NORTHERN IRELAND

Departmental Information Officers

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many  (a) press officers and  (b) communications staff were employed by his Department (i) in each of the last five years and (ii) on the latest date for which figures are available; and what the cost of employing these staff was in each such year.

Shaun Woodward: All communication duties within my Department are conducted by press officers. The number and costs are detailed in the following table.
	
		
			   Press officers  Cost  (£) 
			 2009-08 10 579,343.36 
			 2008-07 10 532,022.10 
			 2007-06 14 686,416.62 
			 2006-05 12 596,888.06 
			 2005-04 14 540,123.79

Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent assessment he has made of the rules governing the holding of other jobs by  (a) the Chairman and  (b) members of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission.

Paul Goggins: The terms and conditions of the Chief Commissioner and other Commissioners of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (NIHRC) require them to inform the Secretary of State and the NIHRC's chief executive in advance of any appointments that may impinge on their duties as Commissioners and to declare any conflicts of interest. The NIHRC code of practice also contains further guidance for Commissioners. This can be found at:
	www.nihrc.org/dms/data/NIHRC/attachments/dd/files/41/Code_of_PracticeforCommissioners_1107.pdf

Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much has been spent by the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (NIHRC) on  (a) travel,  (b) public relations and  (c) publications in each year since the NIHRC's inception.

Shaun Woodward: The annual reports and financial accounts of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (with the exception of their first two years' financial accounts, copies of which have been placed in the Library of the House) are available publicly on the Commission's website at:
	http://www.nihrc.org/index.php?page=subresources& category_ id=27&from=0&resources_id=56&search_content=&Itemid=61
	These reports contain a breakdown of the Commission's operating costs by category of expenditure. The categories for each year which might be said to relate to travel, public relations or publications are listed as follows.
	
		
			   £ 
			  1999-2000  
			 Hospitality, travel and subsistence 25,434 
			 Advertising and publicity 78,819 
			 Conferences and seminars n/a 
			 Printing, postage and stationery 20,240 
			  2000-01  
			 Hospitality, travel and subsistence 19,843 
			 Advertising and publicity 42,701 
			 Conferences and seminars n/a 
			 Printing, postage and stationery 29,294 
			  2001-02  
			 Hospitality, travel and subsistence 12,954 
			 Advertising and publicity 27,540 
			 Conferences and seminars 775 
			 Printing, postage and stationery 31,600 
			  2002-03  
			 Hospitality, travel and subsistence 11,637 
			 Advertising and publicity 32,059 
			 Conferences and seminars 2,184 
			 Printing, postage and stationery 27,728 
			  2003-04  
			 Hospitality, travel and subsistence 21,056 
			 Advertising and publicity 48,178 
			 Conferences and seminars 20,449 
			 Printing, postage and stationery 26,563 
			  2004-05  
			 Hospitality, travel and subsistence 29,402 
			 Advertising and publicity 35,459 
			 Conferences and seminars 3,567 
			 Printing, postage and stationery 26,999 
			  2005-06  
			 Travel, subsistence and hospitality 47,729 
			 Advertising, publicity and publications 73,250 
			 Conferences and seminars n/a 
			 Printing, postage and stationery 40,013 
			  2006-07  
			 Travel, subsistence and hospitality 69,984 
			 Advertising, publicity and publications 63,898 
			 Conferences and seminars 23,041 
			 Printing, postage and stationery 34,888 
			  2007-08  
			 Travel, subsistence and hospitality 60,470 
			 Advertising, publicity and publications 69,325 
			 Conferences and seminars 41,423 
			 Printing, postage and stationery 35,396

SCOTLAND

Departmental Surveys

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will place in the Library a copy of the results of his Department's most recent staff survey; which organisation carried out the survey; and what the cost of the survey was.

Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office's most recent people survey was delivered as part of the Ministry of Justice people survey, and as such its costs were borne by, and not split out from, those of the Ministry of Justice. The Ministry of Justice's share of ORC International's costs for providing the 2009 survey was £192,000. By procuring a single supplier for staff surveys in 2009-10 the civil service has saved 35 per cent. on the total cost of staff surveys in 2008-09. The results of the 2009 survey are expected at the end of January 2010 and these will be published on our website. Following publication we will place a copy of the results in the Library.
	A copy of the last Scotland Office staff survey published in 2007 is available from the Library of the House.

Water

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what recent discussions he has had with the Scottish Executive on the activities in Scotland of water companies providing services in England.

Ann McKechin: My right hon. Friend and I have had no such discussions.

DEFENCE

Air Force: Military Bases

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his plans are for the future of Royal Air Force bases in North Yorkshire; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: RAF Linton-on-Ouse, RAF Church Fenton and RAF Topcliffe are sites that currently provide UK military flying training. The stations are under review as part of the UK Military Flying Training System (MFTS) procurement project which will cater for the future flying training needs of the armed forces. No decisions have yet been taken.
	RAF Leeming will continue to be a core RAF site, with 90 Signals unit providing the RAF communications hub and other units providing support to operations.
	The number and operation of military airfields is under constant review to ensure that the best use is made of the Defence Estate for our armed forces.

Armed Forces: Aviation

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his Department's policy is on the procurement of commercial airline services for the movement of members of the UK armed forces; whether his Department's policy is only to procure the services of UK-owned and operated commercial airlines for such purposes; and if he will make a statement.

Quentin Davies: The procurement of commercial airline services for the movement of members of the UK armed forces is governed by the Public Procurement Requirement and MOD Standard Procurement Policy. Tasks requiring commercial airline services are not restricted to UK-owned and operated commercial airlines.
	Tasks are advertised in the Defence Contracts Bulletin and the Official Journal of the European Union, thus permitting aircraft brokers and airline operators from the UK and other nations to bid for contracts. Contracts will be awarded on the grounds of technical ability to achieve the task, safety and security standards, and of offering best value for money.

Armed Forces: Families

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps he plans to take to consult service families' organisations on the development of his forthcoming Green Paper and Defence Review.

Bob Ainsworth: Service personnel issues are an important theme in the Green Paper. In December 2009, we briefed service and ex-service organisations on the themes of the Green Paper at one of the Department's regular meetings with them. Once the Green Paper has been published there will be further opportunities for service families' organisations to comment on it.
	The Defence Review will be conducted in a new Parliament, and it is too early to say precisely how it will be conducted. This includes decisions about the forms of engagement that will take place during its development.

Armed Forces: Housing

Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the 50 most expensive substitute  (a) service family and  (b) single living accommodation properties rented out in the last 12 months were.

Kevan Jones: Substitute service family accommodation (SSFA) and substitute service single accommodation (SSSA) properties may be rented to accommodate service families and single serving personnel respectively when no suitable Ministry of Defence accommodation is unavailable close or at the duty station. Substitute accommodation is only used as a last resort and often more than one service person may occupy an SSSA property.
	The 50 most expensive SSSA properties rented during 2009 were as follows:
	
		
			  Location  Monthly rent (£)  Number of occupants 
			 London SW1P 3,275.00 3 
			 London SW1P 3,240.00 3 
			 Slough 3,060.75 5 
			 London SW1P 3,030.00 1 
			 London SW1V 2,814.80 3 
			 London N1 2,550.00 3 
			 Salisbury 2,525.00 4 
			 London SE1 2,513.33 2 
			 London SW6 2,408.33 3 
			 London SW1P 2,408.33 2 
			 Saffron Walden 2,402.50 4 
			 London SW1P 2,384.20 2 
			 London SW10 2,383.33 1 
			 London SW17 2,371.15 3 
			 London SW1P 2,340.00 2 
			 London SE1 2,331.80 3 
			 London SW1P 2,325.00 3 
			 London SW1P 2,301.25 2 
			 Nottingham 2,300.00 5 
			 London SW6 2,280.25 2 
			 London SW1P 2,275.00 2 
			 London SW8 2,272.00 2 
			 London NW5 2,253.33 1 
			 London SW1P 2,214.75 2 
			 London SE1 2,209.35 2 
			 London E14 2,202.20 2 
			 Bordon 2,200.00 4 
			 London SW11 2,200.00 2 
			 London SWIP 2,200.00 2 
			 Bordon 2,200.00 4 
			 London SW1P 2,195.50 2 
			 London SE1 2,192.33 2 
			 London SWIV 2,192.00 2 
			 London E14 2,191.66 2 
			 London W8 2,191.66 1 
			 London SE1 2,188.33 1 
			 London SW8 2,185.05 2 
			 London SW1P 2,184.00 2 
			 London SW1P 2,182.85 2 
			 London SWIV 2,181.55 2 
			 London SWIV 2,178.50 2 
			 London SW1P 2,177.80 2 
			 London SW9 2,175.65 2 
			 London SW1P 2,173.60 2 
			 London SW11 2,171.60 2 
			 London SW1P 2,170.00 2 
			 London SW1P 2,169.45 2 
			 London SW1P 2,169.45 2 
			 London SW8 2,162.20 2 
			 London SW11 2,162.00 2 
		
	
	The 50 most expensive SSFA properties rented during 2009 were as follows:
	
		
			  Location  Monthly rent (£) 
			 London SW3 6,933.33 
			 London W2 6,000.00 
			 Northwood 4,700.00 
			 Windsor 4,500.00 
			 Gerrards Cross 4,280.00 
			 London SW19 4,117.00 
			 Northwood 4,038.00 
			 London W6 3,900.00 
			 London SW13 3,725.00 
			 London SW6 3,708.33 
			 New Malden 3,700.00 
			 London SW15 3,683.33 
			 London W4 3,575.00 
			 London SW4 3,575.00 
			 London SE10 3,525.00 
			 Great Missenden 3,500.00 
			 Warminster 3,500.00 
			 Windsor 3,500.00 
			 London NW3 3,383.33 
			 London E14 3,298.75 
			 Richmond 3,284.45 
			 London SW6 3,228.33 
			 Banstead 3,225.00 
			 London W4 3,163.33 
			 Richmond 3,152.05 
			 London W4 3,141.66 
			 London SW15 3,126.00 
			 Sevenoaks 3,050.75 
			 London SW11 3,033.33 
			 London SW15 3,025.25 
			 London W4 3,025.00 
			 Princes Risborough 3,000.00 
			 Great Missenden 3,000.00 
			 Camberley 3,000.00 
			 Great Missenden 3,000.00 
			 Romsey 3,000.00 
			 London SW15 3,000.00 
			 Northwood 3,000.00 
			 Great Missenden 2,950.00 
			 Kingston Upon Thames 2,925.00 
			 Burford 2,920.00 
			 Epsom 2,920.00 
			 Aylesbury 2,900.00 
			 Northwood 2,900.00 
			 London SE10 2,900.00 
			 High Wycombe 2,850.00 
			 Epsom 2,850.00 
			 London SW15 2,839.00 
			 London SW6 2,825.00 
			 Windsor 2,800.00

Armed Forces: Uniforms

Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what funding has been allocated for the development of the taped seam clothing specification for waterproof clothing as part of his Department's personal equipment and common operational clothing contract to date.

Quentin Davies: £5,000 has been spent from the personal equipment and common operational clothing (PECOC) budget on procuring different types of waterproof clothing for testing.

Departmental Land

Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost of maintaining land owned by his Department was in each of the last five years; and what the monetary value of such land was at the latest date for which figures are available.

Kevan Jones: As at 31 March 2009, the Department owned land throughout the world valued at £7.7 billion. It is not possible to separate the amount spent on maintaining land from other elements of estate expenditure without incurring disproportionate cost.

USA: Military Aircraft

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions have taken place since 2006 between his Department and the United States Department of Defence on the developmental progress of the electro-magnetic aircraft launch system.

Quentin Davies: The UK and the US are in regular contact on aircraft carrier issues, including the electro-magnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS). Since 2006 there have been a number of meetings and information exchanges between the MOD's Capital Ships project team and the US Department of Defence's PEO Carriers Team which have covered progress on the EMALS project. The most recent engagement on EMALS between these teams was in November 2009.

WALES

Boilers: Government Assistance

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish the correspondence his Department has had with the Treasury on whether the boiler scrappage scheme should apply in Wales.

Peter Hain: I have had discussions on the 2009 pre-Budget report and its implications for Wales. However I have had no written correspondence with the Treasury on this specific issue.
	Wales will receive consequentials as a consequence of the England-only boiler scrappage scheme. It is a matter for the Welsh Assembly Government to decide how to allocate this additional funding.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

ACP Countries: EU Overseas Trade

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether he plans to review the effectiveness of the Sugar Protocol between the EU and African, Caribbean and Pacific states in providing such countries with access to EU markets.

Gareth Thomas: The UK supported the ending of the Protocol as it led to a highly distorted market for sugar, with European prices three times the global average. The reforms of the sugar market will also give greater access to EU sugar markets from least developed countries.
	The UK will continue to monitor the impact of these changes on ACP countries. The European Commission is making €1.28 billion transitional funding available to help assist ACP countries adjust.

Iraq Committee of Inquiry

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many  (a) documents and  (b) other items of information held in electronic format by his Department of each security classification have been submitted to the Iraq Inquiry; and if he will make a statement.

Douglas Alexander: I refer you to the answer of 14 December 2009,  Official Report, columns 840-41W, by the Minister of State for the Cabinet Office who has answered on behalf of all Departments.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Bars

Michael Fabricant: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission with reference to the press statement of 15 December 2009, on the opening of a nursery on the parliamentary estate; what  (a) consideration the Administration Committee gave to and  (b) consultation with users was undertaken on the closure of Bellamy's bar; and whether the House of Commons Commission has plans to provide an alternative venue for Bellamy's bar.

Nick Harvey: Following the House of Commons Commission's decision that a nursery is to be provided on the parliamentary estate in the space currently occupied by Bellamy's bar, I understand that  (a) the Administration Committee will be consulted, as the details are worked up, on matters such as the service level requirements and contractual arrangements for the provision of nursery services and the timetable for conversion of the accommodation. On  (b), users of the bar are able to make use of the existing provision elsewhere on the estate and there are no plans to provide an alternative venue.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Farmers: Income

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what programmes his Department funds to assist farmers to diversify into tourism; and how much funding has been allocated under each such programme in 2009-10.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Under the Rural Development Programme for England an indicative budget of approximately £85 million has been identified for assistance to farmers to diversify into non-agricultural activities for the Programme period 2007-13. To the end of November 2009 £10.7 million had been spent with a further £18.1 million committed to new diversification projects.
	It is not possible to break these figures down into specific diversification activities, or to break down overall funding figures into individual financial years within the given timescale.

TRANSPORT

A50

William Cash: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport if he will take steps to ensure the installation of effective soundproofed fencing along the A50 at Blythe Bridge.

Chris Mole: On 14 December 2009 representatives of the Highways Agency met with the hon. Member for Stone (Mr. Cash), local politicians and a number of residents to discuss the recently replaced noise fence on the A50 at Blythe Bridge, and the overall concerns of the residents about noise.
	At the meeting, it was agreed that Highways Agency officials would review the effectiveness of the fence and consider other noise related points raised by the group. Once the review is complete the Department for Transport will write to the hon. Member for Stone and other interested parties to let them know the outcome.

A519

William Cash: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what steps he has taken to provide sufficient safety measures on the A519 at Slindon.

Paul Clark: The A519 is a local road and the responsibility of Staffordshire county council. I understand that the county council have recently undertaken speed surveys along this stretch of highway which indicate that no enforcement action is necessary. As part of the national review of speed limits on A and B roads, the A519 through Slindon will undergo a review commencing in April 2010.

Airports: Security

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport when his Department plans to announce which airports in the Highlands and Islands will introduce full body scanners; and when he expects such scanners to be operational.

Paul Clark: The introduction of scanners is a necessary additional measure in response to the heightened threat to the travelling public. We are discussing urgently with the airport industry the widespread roll out of scanners at UK airports as soon as is practical and developing the code of practice required for their use.

Airports: Security

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether his Department has undertaken an economic impact assessment of the introduction of full body scanners at airports in the Highlands and Islands.

Paul Clark: Relevant assessments will be made, but the introduction of scanners is a necessary additional measure in response to the heightened threat to the travelling public. We are discussing urgently with the airport industry the widespread roll out of scanners at UK airports as soon as is practical and developing the code of practice for their use.

Aviation

Mark Hunter: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many premium economy tickets were purchased for flights leaving the UK in  (a) 2007,  (b) 2008 and  (c) 2009.

Paul Clark: The Department for Transport does not hold this information.

Aviation: Security

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether his Department has conducted a recent investigation into the practices of  (a) the Slovakian authorities and  (b) relevant authorities of other EU member states in placing test packets of explosives into passenger baggage for the purposes of testing airport explosive detection systems; what information his Department holds on whether such practices are in use on (i) flights to the UK and (ii) flights with UK carriers; whether the issue has been placed on the agenda of the Council of Ministers for consideration; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Clark: holding answer 11 January 2010
	European regulations on aviation security require each member state to apply a national quality control programme to monitor compliance with and ensure the effectiveness of its aviation security programme.
	The UK does not hold details of the Slovakian quality control programme nor those of other member states. The monitoring of these programmes at a Community level is undertaken by the European Commission.
	Department for Transport officials have been in touch with the European Commission in respect of the recent incident in Slovakia and the Commission has indicated that it will be writing to the Slovak authorities to ask for a detailed explanation on what happened in order to determine whether further action is necessary.

Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency: Databases

Bob Russell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much was received in payments from private companies for information from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency database in each of the last five financial years; and how much he estimates will be received from such payments in  (a) 2009-10 and  (b) 2010-11.

Paul Clark: holding answer 11 January 2010
	The following table shows the income received from private companies for information from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency's Databases.
	
		
			   £ million 
			 2004-05 4.7 
			 2005-06 6.2 
			 2006-07 7.0 
			 2007-08 8.1 
			 2008-09 8.7 
			 2009-10 9.2 
			 (1) Estimated forecast to year end  Note: Figures are not currently available for 2010-11

Driving under Influence

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what timetable has been set for the  (a) publication of and  (b) Government response to the review by Sir Peter North of proposed changes to the legislative regime for drink and drug driving.

Paul Clark: Sir Peter North has been asked to report by 31 March. The Department for Transport will then consult on his findings and will then publish the final road safety strategy. The date for publishing the report and the strategy will be decided in light of Sir Peter's findings.

Roads: Safety

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport if he will issue guidance to local authorities on best practice in dealing with the effects of extreme weather conditions on UK roads.

Sadiq Khan: The Government endorse the UK Roads Liaison Group's (UKRLG) code of practice on highways maintenance management, "Well-maintained Highways", which already includes recently-updated guidance on winter service and other extreme weather events. The code is available free from:
	www.ukroadsliaisongroup.org
	On the specific issue of managing salt distribution for keeping local roads clear, we are working with salt suppliers, the Local Government Association and the Highways Agency to prioritise the use of salt, to ensure salt reaches those most in need.
	It is up to local highways authorities to decide what measures to take in response to the severe weather conditions.

Trans-European Network Transport Programme

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport for which  (a) rail and  (b) road projects his Department has bid for funds under the Trans-European Network Transport programme in each year since 1997; and how much was (i) requested and (ii) allocated in each case.

Sadiq Khan: holding answer 11 January 2010
	The following tables list the projects submitted for funding from the Trans-European Network Transport (TEN-T) programme:
	
		
			  Rail p rojects 
			  € million 
			   Title  Requested  Allocated 
			 1997 Modernisation of the West Coast main line, between London and Scotland n/a 1.6 
			 1997 Channel Tunnel Rail Link n/a 24 
			 1997 Feasibility study and associated design work for the modernisation of the West Coast main line n/a 7 
			 1998 Channel Tunnel Rail Link 16.6 25 
			 1998 West Coast main line 6.9 10 
			 1998 Manchester airport interchange 11.2 0.5 
			 1998 Luton airport-railway station-airport people mover 0.4 0.6 
			 1999 Channel Tunnel Rail Link 35 29.5 
			 1999 West coast main line-studies 15 13 
			 1999 Manchester airport ground transport Interchange-phase 2 3.8 0.8 
			 1999 London Luton airport surface access (people mover)-phase 2 0.7 0.714 
			 1999 Birmingham airport people mover and multi-modal interchange 1.39 1.39 
			 2000 Channel Tunnel Rail Link 40 30 
			 2000 West Coast main line 20 16 
			 2000 Manchester airport ground transport interchange 0.59 0.50 
			 2001 Cross London routes study 1.2 1 
			 2001 Feasibility study for trans-Pennine and North Wales-improved links to Manchester airport 5.0 1.5 
			 2001 Stanstead airport-improved rail link study 3.0 0 
			 2001 Manchester airport ground interchange 5.7 0 
			 2001 Birmingham airport people mover and interchange 1 0 
			 2001 East Coast main line freight (study) 1 0 
			 2001 East Coast main line passenger study 5 0 
			 2001 East Coast main line passenger project 5 0 
			 2001 High speed line study 1.2 0 
			 2002 Feasibility study for Southampton to West Coast main line (Liverpool and Manchester) gauge and capacity enhancement works for rail freight 2.5 1 
			 2003 Southampton to WCML rail freight upgrade (study) 1 1 
			 2003 Manchester airport ground interchange phase 3a 1.07 1.07 
			 2003 Reconstruction of Bleach Green to Whitehead section of TENs route rail project 2.15 2.15 
			 2004 Reading station 1.14 1 
			 2005 Edinburgh airport rail link study 3.56 2 
			 2005 Rail freight capacity and gauge improvement Haven Ports to South Yorkshire terminals 1.82 0 
			 2006 Glasgow airport rail link study 3.3 1.7 
			 2006 Edinburgh airport rail link study 3.95 0 
			 2006 Heathrow airtrack study 1.37 0 
			 2006 Eurotunnel-ERTMS-GSM-R study (joint bid with France) 6.63 0 
			 2006 SMART (Solent-Midlands advancement of rail transport for freight) 8.5 0 
			 2007 Manchester airport 3rd rail platform 2.07 1.64 
			 2008 Ballymena-Derry: track life extension 1.58 1.58 
			 2008 Forth replacement crossing 6.6 0 
			 2009 Felixstowe-Nuneaton route work 14.9 9.2 
			 2009 Birmingham New Street Gateway-improving access and capacity 2.45 0 
			 2009 Reading station area redevelopment-for the period 2009-2010 17.39 0 
			 2009 West Coast stations 7.46 0 
			 2009 Manchester hub study 0.65 0 
			 2009 Edinburgh Glasgow improvements programme (EGIP) 3.98 0 
			 2009 Forth replacement crossing, Scotland, United Kingdom 9.3 0 
			 2009 Reading station concourse and interchange design and planning application 0.87 0 
			 n/a = Not available. 
		
	
	
		
			  Rail projects (multi-annual work programme ), b udget period 2000-2006 
			  € million 
			  Title  Requested  Allocated 
			 Channel Tunnel Rail Link 210 103 
			 West Coast main line 120 53 
			 Kings Cross/St. Pancras interchange 25 21 
			 Felixstowe to Nuneaton upgrade 33.7 5 
		
	
	
		
			  Road projects 
			  € million 
			   Title  Requested  Allocated 
			 1997 A75 Stranraer to Gretna Trunk Road n/a 1.3 
			 1997 English Studies on the Ireland-UK-Benelux Road Link: M6/M11 capacity studies; bridge strength assessment study; English A14 strategy study n/a 1.7 
			 1998 Cardiff International Airport Road: Phase B (1998-99) studies 1.3 1.3 
			 2000 Ireland-UK-Benelux Road Link 0.52 0.50 
			 2000 A303 Stonehenge improvement 6.2 0 
			 2001 A303 Stonehenge improvement 1.5 0 
			 2001 A8 Belfast to Larne Road 1.7 0 
			 2001 Trans-Pennine upgrade study (freight) 5 1.5 
			 2005 A1/N1 Newry to Dundalk Works 6.95 5 
			 2006 A5117 Deeside Park Junction improvement works 6.1 4 
			 2009 A14 Corridor Traffic Management Scheme 17.7 11.7 
			 2009 A8 Belfast to Larne (Coleman's Corner to Ballyrickard Road) 2.17 2.17 
			 2009 A6 Randalstown to Londonderry (Londonderry to Dungiven) 3.03 1.32 
			 2009 A5 Western Transport Corridor (WTC) study 10 0 
			 n/a = Not available. 
		
	
	
		
			  Road projects (multi-annual work programme), budget periods 2000-2006 and 2007-2013 
			  € million 
			  Title  Requested  Allocated 
			 A1 Loughbrickland to Beech Hill Works 2.42 1.5 
			 A120 Stanstead to Braintree road upgrading 15.8 15.8 
			 Package for improvements and upgrade of road infrastructure on sections of A14, M6 and A1. 283.72 80.71

WORK AND PENSIONS

Disability Living Allowance

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people resident in  (a) Chesterfield constituency,  (b) Derbyshire and  (c) England received (i) the mobility component, (ii) the care component and (iii) both the mobility and the care components of the disability living allowance in each of the last five years.

Jonathan R Shaw: The available information is in the following tables:
	
		
			  Disability living allowance cases in payment for the Chesterfield parliamentary constituency for each of the last five years, as at May of each year 
			   May 
			   2005  2006  2007  2008  2009 
			 Care component only 810 850 890 900 940 
			 Mobility component only 1,290 1,270 1,210 1,220 1,200 
			 Care and mobility components 4,170 4,380 4,530 4,790 5,010 
			 Total 6,270 6,500 6,630 6,910 7,150 
			  Notes:  1. Caseload figures are rounded to the nearest 10. Totals may not sum due to rounding.  2. Figures show the number of people in receipt of an allowance, and exclude people with entitlement where the payment has been suspended, for example if they are in hospital.  3. The postcode of a claimant is used to assign the parliamentary constituency, local authority and government office region.   Source:  Department for Work and Pensions Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study. 
		
	
	
		
			  Disability living allowance cases in payment for Derbyshire county/unitary local authority for each of the last five years, as at May of each year 
			   May 
			   2005  2006  2007  2008  2009 
			 Care component only 5,350 5,600 5,780 5,910 6,110 
			 Mobility component only 8,090 7,930 7,690 7,480 7,260 
			 Care and mobility components 25,440 26,440 27,660 28,930 30,140 
			 Total 38,880 39,970 41,130 42,320 43,510 
			  Notes:  1. Caseload figures are rounded to the nearest 10. Totals may not sum due to rounding.  2. Figures show the number of people in receipt of an allowance, and exclude people with entitlement where the payment has been suspended, for example if they are in hospital. 3. The Derbyshire region is defined as the unitary local authority of the claimant and includes eight local authorities. The postcode of a claimant is used to assign the parliamentary constituency, local authority and government office region. Local authorities are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant postcode directory.   Source:  Department for Work and Pensions Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study. 
		
	
	
		
			  Disability living allowance cases in payment in England for each of the last five years, as at May of each year 
			   May 
			   2005  2006  2007  2008  2009 
			 Care component only 307,350 314,330 317,120 328,040 336,370 
			 Mobility component only 443,330 434,990 424,320 416,130 406,200 
			 Care and mobility components 1,453,120 1,512,780 1,588,240 1,667,590 1,751,540 
			 Total 2,203,800 2,262,100 2,329,680 2,411,760 2,494,110 
			  Notes:  1. Caseload figures are rounded to the nearest 10. Totals may not sum due to rounding.  2. Figures show the number of people in receipt of an allowance, and exclude people with entitlement where the payment has been suspended, for example if they are in hospital. 3. The postcode of a claimant is used to assign the parliamentary constituency, local authority and government office region. Local authorities are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant postcode directory.   Source:  Department for Work and Pensions Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study.

Employment Schemes: Young People

Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the estimated cost to her Department is of  (a) the Young Person's Guarantee and  (b) the Graduate Guarantee in 2009-10.

Jim Knight: holding answer 11 January 2010
	In Budget 2009, the Chancellor announced the Young Person's Guarantee, a £1 billion package of work and training opportunities for young people phased in between October 2009 and January 2010 and available until March 2011. It is not possible to estimate expenditure in 2009-10 because it is dependent on the number of jobs that will be bid for in each monthly Future Jobs Fund bidding round. This cannot be estimated with any degree of certainty as the fund is a challenge fund.
	The Graduate Guarantee draws on a range of DWP and BIS-funded provision, including BIS's Graduate Talent Pool and DWP's Six Month Offer. As we do not know how many graduates will access help through different routes, we are unable to provide an estimate of the cost of the Graduate Guarantee to DWP.

Jobseeker's Allowance

Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average processing time for a jobseeker's allowance application has been in the last 12 months.

Jim Knight: holding answer 11 January 2010
	The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Darra Singh. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Darra Singh:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking what the average processing time for a jobseeker's allowance application has been in the last 12 months. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	Jobcentre Plus does have a target for the average actual clearance time taken to process Jobseekers Allowance (JSA) claims. The current target is 11.5 days. This time is calculated across an average of all the claims cleared in any given month looking at the date the customer first contacted Jobcentre Plus or the customer's first day of unemployment, whichever is the later. The end date is the date a formal decision is made on the claim and a notification is issued to the customer on entitlement.
	The following table provides the average actual clearance time taken to process JSA claims over the last 12 months. This information is available on the Jobcentre Plus website.
	
		
			  Month  Days 
			 December 2008 10.4 
			 January 2009 10.3 
			 February 2009 10.5 
			 March 2009 9.7 
			 April 2009 9.5 
			 May 2009 9.9 
			 June 2009 10.1 
			 July 2009 10.5 
			 August 2009 10.7 
			 September 2009 10.0 
			 October 2009 9.7 
			 November 2009 9.2 
			  Source: MISP 11 December 2009 
		
	
	I hope this information is helpful

New Deal Schemes

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which of the milestones referred to in her Department's paper "Transforming Britain's labour market: Ten years of the New Deal"  (a) has and  (b) has not been met on time; and what progress has been made on those milestones which have not been met.

Jim Knight: We outlined a number of commitments in the Department for Work and Pensions paper "Transforming Britain's labour market: Ten years of the New Deal". I have outlined these in the following table.
	
		
			  Commitment  Date  Progress 
			  Parents   
			 Consultation on whether the Skills Health Check should be mandatory for lone parents Early 2008 Consultation was undertaken on whether Lone Parents should be mandated to Work Related Activity as part of the 2008 Green Paper ('No-one Written Off-July 2008') 
			 Review of how to extend right to request flexible working to parents of older children Spring 2008 Fully introduced 
			 Introduce group seminars for lone parents nationally April 2008 Fully introduced 
			 Jobcentre Plus will aim, where possible, to guarantee lone parents who are willing and able to work a job interview with an employer April 2008 Fully introduced 
			 Support and guidance from a personal adviser available for all lone parents who have moved into work April 2008 Fully introduced 
			 National roll-out of the In Work Emergency Discretion Fund April 2008 Fully introduced 
			 Pilot of the provision of up-front child care costs in London April 2008 Fully introduced 
			 Extend In Work Credit to all lone parents April 2008 Fully introduced 
			 Pilot of In Work Credit and retention package for lone parents April 2008 Fully introduced 
			 Legal duty on local authorities in England and Wales to secure sufficient child care to meet the needs of their local communities, in particular those on low incomes and with disabled children, takes effect April 2008 Fully introduced 
			 New Deal for Partners strengthened by increasing number of Work Focused Interviews April 2008 Fully introduced 
			 Introduce quarterly Work Focused Interviews for lone parents in the last year before their child reaches the age where they are no longer entitled to Income Support From October 2008 Fully introduced 
			 Lone parents with a youngest child aged 12 or over will no longer be entitled to Income Support solely on the grounds of being a lone parent October 2008 Fully introduced 
			 Extend Work Trials for up to six weeks for those taking part in the New Deal for Lone Parents Late 2008 Fully introduced 
			 Child maintenance disregard in main income related benefits to rise to £20 per week By end 2008 Fully introduced 
			 Lone parents with a youngest child aged 10 or over will no longer be entitled to Income Support solely on the grounds of being a lone parent October 2009 Fully introduced 
			 Skills screen for all new lone parent Income Support claimants as part of work-focused interview, and encourage attendance at full Skills Heath Check 2009-10 This will be considered as part of planning for the national implementation of an integrated employment and skills service for Jobseeker's Allowance customers in 2010-11 
			 Child maintenance disregard in main income related benefits to rise to £40 per week From April 2010 On track 
			 Lone parents with a youngest child aged seven or over will no longer be entitled to Income Support solely on the grounds of being a lone parent October 2010 On track 
			 Every school in England to be an extended school 2010 On track 
			
			  Jobseekers   
			 Back to Work Seminar pilots Early 2008 Implemented March 2009 
			 Flexible New Deal procurement activity begins Spring 2008 Commenced April 2008 
			 Pilot a Better Off in Work Credit October 2008 Introduced in Yorkshire and the Humber in October 2008. 
			 Contracts awarded and contract start-up activity Early spring 2009 Successful Flexible New Deal bidders announced May 2009 and start up activity commenced. Contracts signed with 14 Flexible New Deal Providers in August 2009 
			 Changes by Jobcentre Plus to implement new Jobseeker's Allowance regime April 2009 Phase 1 was completed in April 2009 (Phase 2 will be completed in April 2010) 
			 First customers referred to contracted Flexible New Deal October 2009 First customers referred to Flexible New Deal providers on 2 October (service delivery started in all contract package areas from 5 October) 
			 Potential extension of a Better Off in Work Credit 2009 The Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in his pre-Budget report statement of 9 December 2009 that the Better Off in Work Credit will be rolled out across the country 
			 Skills screen for all new Jobseeker's Allowance customers 2009-10 Fully introduced 
			 In trial areas, pilot mandatory Skills Health Checks for long term Jobseeker's Allowance customers 2009-10 In the 12 Jobcentre Plus districts involved in trialling Integrated Employment and Skills services, Jobseeker's Allowance claimants who have not attended a Skills Health Check on a voluntary basis by week 26 of their claim are mandated to do so 
			 Training allowances for long term Jobseeker's Allowance customers to attend intensive employability focused training of up to eight weeks 2009-10 This came into effect in April 09 on a national basis (originally trialled in the west midlands) 
			 Pilot mandatory basic skills and job-focused training courses for Jobseeker's Allowance customers who have been on benefit for six months 2009-10 The Pilot for mandatory basic skills and job-focused training courses for Jobseeker's Allowance customers who have been on benefit for six months is due to commence in 2010 (pending the legislative process) 
			
			  Health conditions and disabilities   
			 Publication of the review of the health of Britain's working age population led by the National Director for Health and Work, Dame Carol Black Early 2008 'Working for a healthier tomorrow: Dame Carol Black's review of the health of Britain's working age population' was published in March 2008. Government responded to the review in November 2008 with the publication of 'Improving health and work: changing lives' 
			 Pathways to Work available across Great Britain to anyone on incapacity benefits April 2008 Fully introduced 
			 Return to Work Credit of £40 per week tax free for a year available to everyone eligible who moves into work April 2008 Fully introduced 
			 Introduction of the Employment and Support Allowance October 2008 Fully introduced 
			 Introduction of mandatory Pathways to Work interviews and the new Work Capability Assessment for existing Incapacity Benefit customers who are under 25 2009 Introduction of mandatory Pathways to Work interviews achieved to timescale. Interviews are taking place between November 2009 and March 2011. Existing incapacity benefits customers under 25 will be assessed using the Work Capability Assessment when they are migrated to Employment and Support Allowance from October 2010 
			 Remove Housing Benefit learning restrictions for short term Incapacity Benefit customers to allow them to study full time 2009 Yet to be introduced. Exploratory work is ongoing 
			 Skills screen for Employment and Support Allowance customers soon after the start of claim, and where appropriate a mandatory Skills Health Check at a later point in claim 2009-11 This will be considered as part of planning for the national implementation of an integrated employment and skills service for Jobseeker's Allowance customers in 2010-11 
			
			  Young people not in work, education or training   
			 Extend early entry to the New Deal for 18 year olds with a previous history of not being in work, education or training on a voluntary basis April 2008 Fully introduced 
			 Extend a mandatory early entry to the Flexible New Deal for 18 year olds who have not been in work, education or training for six months April 2009 Fully introduced 
			
			  Commissioning and Local Employment Partnership   
			 Publish the Department for Work and Pensions Commissioning Strategy February 2008 Published February 2008 
			 Pilots to test enhancing links between housing organisations and Jobcentre Plus services 2008 Pilots commenced 2008 and due to conclude spring 2011 
			 The new Working Neighbourhoods Fund, jointly sponsored by Department for Work and Pensions and Department for Communities and Local Government will help to focus support and encourage enterprise in areas with high unemployment 2008-11 Fully introduced 
			 Local Employment Partnerships to help 250,000 people into work End of 2010 The Local Employment Partnerships milestone was achieved by the end of August 2009 and has been extended to 750,000 
			
			  Benefit reform   
			 Publish further details of our approach to benefit reform 2008 Commitment met 
			
			  Older workers   
			 Review of default retirement age 2011 We announced in 'Building a society for all ages' that we are bringing forward the review of the Default Retirement Age to 2010. In October the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Department for Work and Pensions issued a joint statement calling for evidence on retirement ages to be submitted by 1 February 2010. This evidence will be used to inform the Default Retirement Age review 
			 UK Commission for Employment and Skills operational April 2008 Operational from April 2008 
			 Trial aspects of an integrated employment and skills service, including; new screening process for basic literacy, numeracy, language and employability skills; new adult advancement and careers service; Skills Health Check; and Skills Accounts for benefit customers 2008-09 The first integrated employment and skills trial began in September 2008. Since then trials have been under way in 12 Jobcentre Plus Districts 
			 Suite of robust operational targets for Jobcentre Plus and the Learning and Skills Council, to underpin the shared Department for Work and Pensions/Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills objective of delivering sustainable employment and progression 2009 The Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills are in the process of finalising robust data measures relating to the commitment made in the 'Command Paper Work Skills, June 2008' that in 2010-11 over 100,000 people will be helped to gain sustainable employment and to achieve a recognised qualification 
			 New adult advancement and careers service fully operational 2010-11 On track 
			 Integrated employment and skills system fully operational 2010-11 On track

Pathways to Work

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of people on Pathways to Work have moved back into sustainable employment  (a) in each year since it has been operating and  (b) in each of the last 12 months, listed by the main reason for which they were receiving incapacity benefit; and if she will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 6 January 2010
	 Official statistics are not available on whether jobs are sustained. Pathways to Work has been operating across Great Britain since April 2008 and data on jobs are available up to January 2009. Figures are not available on the proportion of customers who get jobs because of the length of time needed to allow cohorts of customers to move into work. The monthly number of job entries in Jobcentre Plus and Provider-Led districts since April 2008 by main disabling condition, is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Job entries through Pathways to Work (JCP and Provider-Led, April 2008-January 2009) 
			  Start month  Total  Unknown  Other  Mental and behavioural disorders  Diseases of the nervous system  Diseases of the circulatory system or respiratory system  Diseases of the musculoskeletal system and connective Tissue  Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes 
			 April 20008 6,580 840 1,430 2,500 180 260 810 570 
			 May2008 6,470 780 1,400 2,540 170 250 760 570 
			 June 2008 6,730 690 1,450 2,740 150 260 780 670 
			 July 2008 6,470 730 1,420 2,500 190 240 790 610 
			 August 2008 6,640 670 1,460 2,600 180 240 790 690 
			 September 2008 9,420 980 2,100 3,650 270 340 1,130 950 
			 October 2008 7,870 670 1,850 3,160 230 280 950 730 
			 November 2008 7,380 690 1,580 2,910 230 270 940 730 
			 December 2008 4,530 510 1,030 1,720 120 170 540 440 
			 January 2009 6,040 1,000 1,310 2,060 150 200 720 610 
			 Total 68,120 7,540 15,020 26,390 1,870 2,510 8,230 6,560 
			  Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. Totals may not sum due to rounding. 2. Medical condition information is based on the International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, published by the World Health Organisation. Medical breakdowns are currently available for IB/SDA customers but not for those of ESA.  Source: DWP JCP and Provider-Led databases

Social Security Benefits: Overseas Residence

Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many British citizens resident in other EU member states have been receiving disability living allowance, carer's allowance or attendance allowance since 2007.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 7 January 2010
	Since the judgment by the European Court of Justice in October 2007 over 1,700 people who are resident in other European Economic Area states have been paid disability living allowance, attendance allowance or carer's allowance.

Social Security Benefits: Overseas Residence

Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many appeals by British citizens resident in other EU member states on disability living allowance, carer's allowance and attendance allowance have been  (a) made and  (b) upheld in the last three years.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 7 January 2010
	Since the judgment by the European Court of Justice in October 2007 over 500 appeals have been made by customers who are, or have been, resident in other EEA states. Our records do not indicate how many have been upheld in the last three years.

Social Services

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether people currently eligible for  (a) attendance allowance and  (b) disability living allowance would receive (i) an equivalent level of support, (ii) an equivalent cash payment and (iii) an equivalent cash payment in addition to any other funds received under the proposals in the Government's Social Care Green Paper.

Jonathan R Shaw: As we said in the Green Paper, if we were to draw some disability benefits for older people into the new National Care Service, we would create a new offer for individuals with care needs. This support would be delivered in line with the best principles of the current benefits system: a universal entitlement, with flexible methods of payment through personal budgets, and with a focus on lower-level needs and prevention. It is our aim to deliver a better joined-up service, with people only needing one assessment of their needs to gain access to a whole range of care and support services. We will give more details about the National Care Service offer in due course.

Social Services

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether an assessment for a package of care under the proposals in the Government's Social Care Green Paper includes an assessment of the additional costs of being disabled which will be carried out in the same terms as those proposals in the White Paper which introduced each allowance.

Jonathan R Shaw: The Green Paper Shaping the Future of Care Together proposed a new nationally consistent care assessment process. We will give more details about the National Care Service offer in due course and this will include information on the care assessment process.

Social Services

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  whether an assessment for cash disbursement would take account of non-care services currently purchased out of funds made available through attendance allowance or disability living allowance under the proposals in the Government's Social Care Green Paper;
	(2)  whether she plans to provide an equivalent level of support under the proposals in the Government's Social Care Green Paper to include those non-care services currently purchased out of funds made available through attendance allowance and disability living allowance;
	(3)  whether she plans to place restrictions on the items or services on which people may spend funds from their  (a) attendance allowance or disability living allowance and  (b) other care entitlements.

Jonathan R Shaw: We have not taken any decisions on whether some disability benefits for older people will be reformed in the new care and support system. If disability benefits for older people are reformed as part of the National Care Service, those receiving the affected benefits at the time of reform would continue to receive the same level of cash support. We also know that the flexibility of disability benefits is valued by those who receive them, and we want to ensure that those in receipt of affected benefits at the time of reform retain control over how they spend their cash support.
	Under the new care and support system, once people are assessed they will get a personal budget rather than being told what services they should receive. They will have as much support as they want in using this resource. Some people will choose to take their budget as cash, and pay for everything directly themselves. Others will prefer to let someone else manage the funding on their behalf-either someone from the local authority, or a family member or friend. People will have the control to get the services they want.
	We will give more details about the National Care Service offer in our White Paper in 2010.

Social Services

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many responses to her Department's Social Care Green Paper were  (a) in favour of and  (b) opposed to changes to (i) attendance allowance and (ii) disability living allowance.

Jonathan R Shaw: The public consultation on the Green Paper "Shaping the Future of Care Together", received around 29,000 responses overall. Analysis of all the responses is currently under way, and it would be misleading to comment or provide data on the results until this analysis is fully completed. The Government will be publishing an analysis of the responses in due course.

Winter Fuel Payments: Milton Keynes

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners in Milton Keynes are in receipt of winter fuel allowance; and how much her Department paid to such pensioners in winter fuel allowance in 2009.

Angela Eagle: For winter 2008-09-the last winter for which figures are available-16,810 people in North-East Milton Keynes and 17,350 people in Milton Keynes, South-West received winter fuel payments.
	The Department paid £3.6 million to people in North-East Milton Keynes and £3.8 million to those in Milton Keynes, South-West.

Winter Fuel Payments: Slough

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many claims for winter fuel payments were made by households in Slough in each of the last five years.

Angela Eagle: Information on winter fuel payment claims made by households in Slough is not available.
	Information about the number of payments made to households in Slough is in the following table. 2008-09 is the latest year for which information is available.
	
		
			   Slough constituency 
			 2004-05 13,800 
			 2005-06 13,710 
			 2006-07 13,730 
			 2007-08 13,870 
			 2008-09 14,090 
			  Notes: 1. Figures from 2004-05 are rounded to the nearest five 2. Figures from 2005-06 onwards are rounded to the nearest 10. 3. Parliamentary constituencies are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant ONS postcode directory.  Source: Information directorate 100 per cent data

HOME DEPARTMENT

Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs

Mike Wood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when a new chair of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs will be appointed; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Campbell: holding answer 10 December 2009
	My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Home Department met with the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) on 10 November and outlined the process for recruiting a new chair of the ACMD following the guidelines of the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments (OCPA). My officials are currently pursuing options for appointing the new chair with OCPA and with the ACMD.

Antisocial Behaviour: West Midlands

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much funding his Department has allocated to initiatives to tackle anti-social behaviour in  (a) Tamworth constituency,  (b) Staffordshire and  (c) the West Midlands in each year since 2007.

Alan Campbell: As with all other Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnerships (CDRPs), Tamworth was allocated £25,000 a year from 2003-04 as a contribution towards funding an ASB co-ordinator post. In 2005-06, in England the antisocial co-ordinators grant was pooled within the safer and stronger communities fund. This pooled budget supports the delivery of outcomes and indicators relating to antisocial behaviour in local area agreements (LAAs).
	Other budgets also contribute towards the wider cross-Government strategy to tackle antisocial behaviour. The Government are committed to diverting young people from crime and antisocial behaviour as demonstrated by our investment of around £2 billion on prevention, including activity such as Sure Start Children's Centres, parenting support and positive activities. Last year we launched the Youth Crime Action Plan, a cross-government programme of action to tackle youth crime and antisocial behaviour and reduce re-offending. It set out a triple track approach of enforcement where behaviour is unacceptable, non-negotiable support and challenge to children and families where it is needed and better and earlier prevention. This builds on major progress we have made in the last decade in tackling youth offending. Backed by £100 million of new investment it has led to significant action over the past year and a half, which has made a real difference to young people, families and communities. The number of young people entering the criminal justice system for the first time is falling. The number in England fell from 94,481 in 2007-08 to 74,033 in 2008-09-a 21.6 per cent. decrease.
	Home Office led activities also act to tackle antisocial behaviour, for example the introduction of community support officers, but a monetary value cannot be assigned to that contribution. Also, on 13 October the Home Secretary announced assistance by experts to 62 areas where public perceptions of antisocial behaviour were high. As Tamworth is a priority area it received a visit from an ASB expert on 10 November 2009 and an action plan and support package has been signed off.

Antisocial Behaviour: West Midlands

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many breaches of antisocial behaviour orders have been recorded in  (a) Tamworth constituency,  (b) Staffordshire and  (c) the West Midlands in each year since 2007.

Alan Campbell: Breach of an Anti-Social Behaviour Order (ASBO) is a criminal offence. The number of occasions on which ASBOs were proven to have been breached at all courts in the Staffordshire Criminal Justice System (CJS) area and the West Midlands Government Office Region (GOR) during 2007 is 98 and 720 respectively. ASBOs may be breached more than once and in more than one year. Many ASBOs which are breached in a particular year will have been issued in a previous year. ASBOs may be issued in one CJS area and breached in another-the breach occasions counted here are based on area of breach, not issue. The West Midlands GOR comprises the Staffordshire, Warwickshire, West Mercia and West Midlands CJS areas.
	Data on breaches of ASBOs collected centrally by the Ministry of Justice and held on the court proceedings database only count those occasions where the breach was proven in court to have occurred and are currently available for ASBOs issued between 1 June 2000 and 31 December 2007. These data are not compiled below CJS area level.

Burglary: Rotherham

Denis MacShane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many crimes of burglary were recorded in Rotherham in each year since 2005.

Alan Campbell: The information requested is given in the following table.
	
		
			  Recorded offences of burglary in the Rotherham Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership area 
			   Burglary in a dwelling  Other burglary  Total burglary 
			 2005-06 1,374 2,151 3,525 
			 2006-07 1,457 2,106 3,563 
			 2007-08 1,313 1,818 3,131 
			 2008-09 1,184 1,674 2,858

Children: Police Custody

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance his Department provides to chief constables on detention of children in police cells; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: The Home Office issues two pieces of guidance on the detention of those in custody, including juveniles.
	The PACE Codes of Practice, specifically PACE Code C, outline the requirements on the police with regards to juveniles in custody. Copies of the PACE Codes can be found on the Home Office website:
	http://police.homeoffice.gov.uk/operational-policing/powers-pace-codes/pace-code-intro/indexce1a.html?version=17
	In addition to the PACE Codes, the Home Office, in conjunction with the Association of Chief Police Officers and the National Centre for Policing Excellence (now the National Policing Improvement Agency), has also published "Guidance on the Safer Detention and Handling of Persons in Police Custody". This guidance is also available on the Home Office website:
	http://police.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/operational-policing/Safer_Detention_and_Handling1.html

Crime: Nottingham

Graham Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) crimes,  (b) crimes of domestic burglary,  (c) vehicle-related crimes and  (d) violent crimes there were in Nottingham North constituency in (i) 1997 and (ii) the last year for which information is available.

Alan Campbell: Recorded crime data are not collected specifically at constituency level. The available data relate to the most closely linked Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership (CDRP) area. CDRP data are available only from 1999-2000 onwards. Data for the Nottingham CDRP area for 2008-09 are given in the following table:
	
		
			  Offences recorded by Nottingham police, 2008-09 
			  Offence  Number 
			 Total crime 47,467 
			 Domestic burglary 4,367 
			 Vehicle-related crime 6,096 
			 Violence against the person 8,599

Crime: Olympic Games 2012

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has made an assessment of the likely effects on levels of crime of the staging of the London 2012 Olympics.

Alan Campbell: Consideration of levels of crime associated with staging the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games is undertaken as part of the regular Olympic strategic threat assessment process. Analysis of experiences at previous games indicates and in the footprint of 2012 Olympic venues suggests that reported crime is unlikely to rise substantially, if at all, during games time. However, we are regularly assessing the possibility of changes in crime levels specifically related to the Olympics and putting in place work to address this where necessary.

Crimes of Violence: Knives

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many young people in each youth offending team area were  (a) assaulted with a knife and  (b) killed in a knife attack in each year since 1997.

Alan Campbell: The requested information is not collected centrally.

Crimes of Violence: Sussex

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) offences involving violence against the person,  (b) violent sexual offences and  (c) offences of robbery with violence there were in each basic command unit of the Sussex police force area in each year from 2002-03 to 2008-09.

Alan Campbell: Data for all BCUs across this period are given in tables A to C. Table A contains the data on violence against the person offences, table B contains the data on sexual offences and table C contains the data on robbery offences.
	The Basic Command Unit (BCU) structure in Sussex has changed across this period, as reflected in the tables.
	The terms 'violent sexual offences' and 'robbery with violence' do not correspond to recognised Home Office offence categories. Figures are given for 'sexual offences' and 'robbery', which are Home Office categories.
	
		
			  Table A: Violence against the person offences recorded by Sussex police by BCU (Basic Command Unit), 2002-03 to 2008-09( 1) 
			   Violence against the person offences 
			  BCU name( 2)  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			 Brighton and Hove 4,591 4,040 6,287 7,069 7,628 6,549 5,213 
			 East Downs(3) 2,292 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 East Downs n/a 3,635 5,536 5,441 n/a n/a n/a 
			 East Sussex n/a n/a n/a n/a 9,284 7,885 6,343 
			 Gatwick 106 241 459 555 342 403 238 
			 Hastings and Rother 3,050 3,238 4,186 4,140 n/a n/a n/a 
			 Highdown 2,923 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 North Downs n/a 3,492 4,607 4,732 5,008 4,154 3,634 
			 Weald 1,497 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 West Downs n/a 4,854 6,018 5,930 6,356 6,091 4,838 
			 Western 1,559 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 Total 16,018 19,500 27,093 27,867 28,618 25,082 20,266 
		
	
	
		
			  Table B: Sexual offences recorded by Sussex police by BCU (Basic Command Unit), 2002-03 to 2008-09( 1) 
			   Sexual offences 
			  BCU name( 2)  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			 Brighton and Hove 214 290 438 402 330 282 328 
			 East Downs(3) 147 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 East Downs n/a 185 369 284 n/a n/a n/a 
			 East Sussex n/a n/a n/a n/a 538 446 437 
			 Gatwick 6 12 7 14 19 10 3 
			 Hastings and Rother 225 167 279 265 n/a n/a n/a 
			 Highdown 185 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 North Downs n/a 263 309 305 320 248 277 
			 Weald 200 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 West Downs n/a 284 399 389 409 341 333 
			 Western 106 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 Total 1,083 1,201 1,801 1,659 1,616 1,327 1,378 
		
	
	
		
			  Table C: Robbery offences recorded by Sussex police by BCU (Basic Command Unit), 2002-03 to 2008-09( 1) 
			   Robbery offences 
			  BCU name( 2)  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			 Brighton and Hove 464 460 462 378 404 356 434 
			 East Downs(3) 220 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 East Downs n/a 277 196 168 n/a n/a n/a 
			 East Sussex n/a n/a n/a n/a 297 231 271 
			 Gatwick 4 3 * * * 3 0 
			 Hastings and Rother 286 275 160 170 n/a n/a n/a 
			 Highdown 120 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 North Downs n/a 185 181 210 139 153 179 
			 Weald 102 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 West Downs n/a 225 228 170 165 156 150 
			 Western 49 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 Total 1,245 1,425 1,228 1,098 1,007 899 1,034 
			 n/a = Not available. (1) The information presented complies with the National Statistics Code of Practice for Data Access and Confidentiality. In order to protect confidentiality, all counts lower than three have been suppressed. Other counts may be suppressed to protect confidentiality. These are denoted by an asterisk symbol in the cell. (2) The BCU structure in Sussex has changed across this period. (3) Before April 2003.

Detention Centres: Children

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what support his Department provides to young children detained in immigration removal centres.

Phil Woolas: Three immigration removal centres in the UK can accommodate families with children. Dungavel House routinely accommodates family groups for approximately 72 hours and Tinsley House for approximately 24 hours. Where detention is likely to extend beyond this timeframe, families are transferred to Yarl's Wood, which has facilities to support longer periods of detention. These include:
	A comprehensive welfare framework to support family members;
	Access to onsite independent social workers and registered counsellors;
	An Ofsted inspected crèche and school classrooms delivering 30 hours per week of tuition by qualified teachers for children aged five to 16 years;
	A crèche staffed seven days a week from nine to five by appropriately qualified child care professionals for children under school age.
	In addition to structured activities, children are able to voice concerns using dedicated complaints forms and can participate in a fortnightly children's forum. The centres provide internet and telephone facilities to enable children to keep in touch with friends in the community.
	All immigration removal centres provide free onsite primary health care to the same level of care as NHS general practices in the community. Referrals to local hospitals for secondary care are made as medically required. Yarl's Wood provides dedicated services to meet the needs of families and children including a paediatric nurse, health and midwife visitors, weight and immunisation clinics which are able to prescribe malarial prophylaxis for identified risk groups, access to children's acute mental health services (CAMH) and counselling services.

Detention Centres: Children

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many children were detained in immigration removal centres in 2008.

Phil Woolas: The requested information is not available; however, in August 2009 the Control of Immigration Quarterly Statistical publication was expanded to include, for the first quarters of 2009, information on persons entering detention, total number of persons leaving detention and the number of families with children held in detention. This information is available split by age (to separately identify children), and will continue to be published quarterly in the future; however data for earlier years will remain unavailable.
	Information on the number of children under the age of 18 entering detention solely under Immigration Act powers in Q1 to Q3 2009 by age and country of nationality is available in
	 Q1 and Q2 2009
	Table 8a and 8b of the Control of Immigration Quarterly Statistical Summary United Kingdom publication at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs09/immiq209.pdf
	and Tables G and H of the supplementary tables at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs09/immiq209supp.xls
	 Q3 2009
	Table 9 of the Control of Immigration Quarterly Statistical Summary United Kingdom publication at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs09/immiq309.pdf
	and Table H of the supplementary tables at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs09/immiq309supp.xls
	Published statistics on immigration and asylum are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate website at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html

DNA: Databases

Rob Marris: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of those arrested in  (a) 2004,  (b) 2005,  (c) 2006,  (d) 2007 and  (e) 2008 and subsequently convicted of an offence in circumstances where there was a match with the National DNA Database were persons who had never previously been convicted or cautioned for a criminal offence.

Alan Campbell: holding answer 16 December 2009
	Information on the proportion of people arrested with no previous convictions or cautions who have subsequently been convicted following a match on the National DNA Database (NDNAD) is not available from the NDNAD. The NDNAD holds DNA profiles taken from persons arrested for a recordable offence but does not hold data on their criminal histories or on the outcome of the police investigation following a match on the NDNAD; this information is held on the Police National Computer (PNC). The information sought could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	Some research information is, however, available on the number of DNA profiles taken from those arrested but not charged and from those arrested, charged but not convicted of an offence that have resulted in a DNA match, thus providing the police with an intelligence link on the possible identity of the offender and assisting in the detection of crimes. In April 2004, an amendment to the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) 1984 came into effect which enabled the police to take and retain DNA and fingerprints from persons who had been arrested for a recordable offence. In the period April 2004 to December 2005, the retention of DNA profiles of arrested persons who had not been charged or proceeded against had resulted in matches with crime scene profiles from over 3,000 offences.
	In May 2001, an amendment to PACE 1984 came into effect which enabled the police to retain DNA samples taken from persons who had been charged but not convicted of an offence. In the period May 2001 to December 2005, an estimated 200,000 DNA samples taken from people charged with offences were retained on the NDNAD, which would previously have had to be removed because of the absence of a conviction. From these, approximately 8,500 profiles of individuals have been linked with crime scene profiles, involving nearly 14,000 offences.
	Some further research in 2009 has also looked at this issue. A research project on DNA retention looked at 818 matches in 2008-09, of which at least 639 were for murder, manslaughter and rape crimes, and at the 639 subject profiles involved in these matches. The results showed that 69 subject profiles (11 per cent.) from the 639 matches for serious crimes belonged to individuals who did not have a conviction at the time of the match but whose DNA had been retained on the NDNAD. This research considered only those matches where the loading of the crime scene DNA profile resulted in an immediate match with an existing subject profile, and does not include those matches where the subject profile was loaded after the crime scene profile. It therefore shows the value of retaining DNA subject profiles.
	A 'match' means that DNA from material found at a crime scene matches a DNA profile from a known individual. A detection, prosecution or conviction does not necessarily follow from a match, as the person's presence at the crime scene could have been for innocent reasons, or it may not have been possible or sensible for a number of reasons to take an investigation of the match forward.

Domestic Violence

Don Touhig: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what research his Department has commissioned to uncover the extent of domestic violence against women.

Alan Campbell: The Home Office funds the British Crime Survey (BCS) a nationally representative survey of adults resident in households in England and Wales. The survey asks about crimes that have been experienced in the last 12 months including those not reported to or recorded by the police. The BCS collects information on domestic violence both through face-to-face interviews and self-completion methods. The latest findings, including breakdowns by sex, are available in the Crime in England and Wales 2008-09 report, which is available at the following link:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs09/hosb1109vol1.pdf

Domestic Violence

Don Touhig: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent steps his Department has taken to support women who are subject to domestic violence.

Alan Campbell: On 25 November, the Government launched 'Together We Can End Violence Against Women and Girls: A Strategy'. As part of the Strategy, the Government have committed to continuing their investment in specific domestic violence services such as national helplines, Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conferences (MARACs) and Independent Domestic Violence Advisers (IDVAs). Over £5 million will be invested in 2010-11 in IDVAs and the further roll-out of MARACs.
	The strategy also commits to developing a new online directory of Violence Against Women and Girls services, which will include services for victims of domestic violence.

Driving

Stephen Ladyman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what mechanisms are in place to ensure that staff who drive  (a) a vehicle for which (i) his Department and (ii) one of its executive agencies is responsible have valid driving licences and  (b) their own vehicles in the course of their official duties for (A) his Department and (B) one of its executive agency have valid driving licences and insurance; what guidance is issued to those staff in respect of road safety while carrying out official duties; what steps are taken to monitor compliance with that guidance; what requirements there are on such staff to report to their line managers accidents in which they are involved while driving in the course of their official duties; and whether such reports are investigated.

Phil Woolas: The Home Office policy on fleet management and operations, including the use of private vehicles, requires that all staff present their driving licences for checking at least once per annum. This is shortly to be increased to a twice per annum check.
	Where official vehicles are used then the Home Office self-insures these as permitted under the Road Traffic Act 1988, Section 143. Where private vehicles are used then staff members must have management approval to drive on official business and must present a valid insurance certificate which provides indemnity against all third party claims arising for injury or death of third parties or damage to property.
	Home Office policy, currently managed by HM Prison Service but transferring in to Home Office this month, requires that any staff involved in an accident must report the facts to their line manager within 24 hours. All accidents are required to be investigated at local business unit level.
	Staff are advised of their requirement to comply with current legislation with regard to driving through policy and a driver safety leaflet is provided to business units to issue to drivers.
	Home Office policy on driving at work is currently under review and is being revised to maintain its currency with legislation.

Drugs

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made by his Department in its review of legal highs commissioned earlier this year.

Alan Campbell: In March this year, my predecessor commissioned the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) to undertake a review of so called "legal highs" or new psychoactive substances, and provide advice on their harms and availability. The first output of this work was the ACMD's advice on synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonists found in smoking products such as "Spice" which, following approval of Parliament, have been controlled as class B drugs under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 since the 23 December 2009. The ACMD's review continues, with its consideration of the cathinone group of substances, which includes mephedrone, as its next priority.

Entry Clearances

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 8 December 2009,  Official Report, columns 220-22W, on entry clearances, if he will provide equivalent statistics for  (a) January and  (b) February 2009.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 11 January 2010
	 The requested information for January and February is provided as follows. In addition the figures provided for the period March-October have been updated.
	
		
			   (a) Tier one (general)  (b) Tier one (post study)  (d) Tier two (ICT)  (f) Tier four (child)  (f) Tier four (general)  (g) Tier five youth mobility 
			  2009  IC  OOC  IC  OOC  IC  OOC  IC  OOC  IC  OOC  IC  OOC 
			 January 639 2,281 2,051 319 185 1,002 - - - - - 1,890 
			 February 1,025 2,024 4,556 375 503 1,461 - - - - - 1,560 
			 March 2,491 2,376 4,560 372 573 1,893 15 - - - - 3,306 
			 April 3,238 1,864 1,901 298 478 1,756 367 37 - 957 - 1,169 
			 May 3,357 1,078 1,751 338 585 1,745 694 77 3 4,386 - 2,896 
			 June 2,648 785 2,497 379 831 2,163 1,995 404 11 12,127 - 1,839 
			 July 1,844 560 2,460 300 806 2,009 5,361 1,231 13 30,528 - 1,555 
			 August 1,899 594 1,473 356 528 1,975 5,199 3,101 19 53,572 - 1,101 
			 September 2,158 640 1,895 396 463 2,109 6,921 1,000 46 62,006 - 1,124 
			 October 2,459 643 2,441 422 551 1,893 9,170 269 105 24,586 - 1,231 
			  Note : IC = In-country grants of leave to remain OOC = Out-of-country visas issued 
		
	
	The table above is based on approved main applications only. These data are not provided under National Statistic protocols. They have been derived from local management information and is therefore provisional and subject to change.

Hamas: Internet

Louise Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will take steps to prevent Hamas's al-Fatah website being accessed by children resident in the UK.

David Hanson: holding answer 11 January  2010
	 We are currently assessing whether there is sufficient evidence to include the al-Fatah website in the list of material provided on a voluntary basis to filtering companies for inclusion in their parental control software.
	It would be for the police to decide whether a website reaches the threshold for a notice to be issued under section 3 of the Terrorism Act 2006.

Human Trafficking

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what training and guidance first responder agencies have received on how to make a referral to the national referral mechanism on behalf of a potential victim of trafficking; and who has provided it.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 11 January 2010
	 Guidance on the National Referral Mechanism can be found on the Home Office website:
	http://www.crimereduction.homeoffice.gov.uk/humantrafficking005.htm
	In addition, a Trafficking Toolkit is available on the Criminal Justice System website, which provides advice and support to all frontline practitioners who may come into contact with victims of human trafficking. Copies of these publications will be made available in the House Library.
	The UK Border Agency (UKBA) has developed mandatory human trafficking training for all staff, which it has made available to other front line agencies. The UK Human Trafficking Centre, in conjunction with the National Policing Improvement Agency, has developed training for police officers. The training covers all forms of human trafficking and has been incorporated into programmes for all new officers as well as specific programmes such as initial detective training and those aimed at police community support officers, domestic violence, roads policing and public protection programmes.
	NGO organisations who act as first responders have been chosen specifically for their extensive knowledge and experience in working in the field of human trafficking and often contribute to the training of other agencies.
	Human trafficking training for local authorities is delivered either as part of the Local Safeguarding Children Board child trafficking training model or directly by the London Safeguarding Children Board pilot support group to local authorities across the UK.
	The Department of Health has issued guidelines to assist professionals and services to identify and respond to the needs of sexually abused and exploited victims, including those who have been trafficked into and within the UK. The Trafficking Toolkit, available on the Criminal Justice System, also provides specific guidance to NHS professionals.

Human Trafficking

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many referrals of potential victims of trafficking have been made to the National Referral Mechanism at the UK Human Trafficking Centre between 1 April 2009 and 31 December 2009; and which agencies made such referrals.

Phil Woolas: Between 1 April 2009 and 31 December 2009 there have been 289 referrals made to the Competent Authority within the UK Human Trafficking Centre. The referrals were made by the following agencies:
	
		
			  Agency  Number of referrals 
			 Police 166 
			 Local authorities (1)57 
			 Poppy 27 
			 Kalayaan 19 
			 TARA 9 
			 Migrant Helpline 8 
			 CPS 2 
			 NHS 1 
			 Total 289 
			 (1) One of these cases was incorrectly referred to UKBA by the local authority.

Human Trafficking

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many potential victims of trafficking who received no decision on their referral to the National Referral Mechanism since 1 April 2009 have subsequently gone missing.

Phil Woolas: Between 1 April 2009 and 31 December 2009 there have been seven suspended cases where the individual has either absconded or gone missing prior to the reasonable grounds decision being made.
	During the same period 18 cases have also been withdrawn as the individual intended to leave the UK prior to the reasonable grounds decision being made.

Human Trafficking

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of the people who have received a positive conclusive grounds decision from the National Referral Mechanism since 1 April 2009 were  (a) granted a residence permit or any other form of leave to remain and  (b) left the UK through (i) voluntary return and (ii) other means.

Phil Woolas: From the cases referred into the National Referral Mechanism between 1 April 2009 and 31 December 2009, 85 have received positive conclusive grounds decisions. Of these 85 decisions, 30 have been granted a residence permit or other form of leave to remain and 40 are EU or British nationals whose stay in the UK is not subject to immigration control. Tracking victims beyond the reflection and recovery period is limited if there is no longer a risk to their safety or health and they have the right to remain in the UK (UK and EEA victims in particular).This makes it difficult to confirm the numbers of voluntary returns in this category. There is currently no record of any enforced return of individuals conclusively found to be victims of trafficking returned to their own country.

Humberside Police

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the budget of Humberside police force has been in each year since 2000.

David Hanson: The information requested can be found in the following table.
	We announced details of the police grant settlement for 2010-11 on 26 November 2009. Humberside police authority is now in a position to consider their final budget for 2010-11.
	
		
			  Humberside police force budget 2000-01 to 2009-10 
			   Budget requirement (£ million)  Budget change (percentage) 
			 2000-01 118,9 4.0 
			 2001-02 128,2 7.8 
			 2002-03 131,6 2.7 
			 2003-04 141,9 7.9 
			 2004-05 150,4 5.9 
			 2005-06(1) 152,0 -3.1 
			 2006-07 158,0 4.0 
			 2007-08 164,9 4.3 
			 2008-09 169,6 2.9 
			 2009-10 175,0 3.1 
			 (1) 2005-06 figures have been adjusted for purposes of comparison with future years following the transfer of pensions and security funding from general grant in 2006-07.

Licensing Laws: Councillors

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the timetable is for the commencement of the provisions in the Policing and Crime Act 2009 to make councillors interested parties for the purposes of the Licensing Act 2003.

Alan Campbell: We plan to commence: section 28 (persistent sales to children - "three strikes to two strikes"); section 29 (confiscation of alcohol from under 18's); section 30 (new offence of persistently possessing alcohol in a public place by under 18s); section 31 (extending directions to leave to those aged 10 or over), and section 33 (allowing licensing authorities to act as interested parties) from Friday 29 January 2010.
	We are currently developing the guidance on the young people provisions and the licensing authorities as interested parties provisions, so that the police, local authorities and youth services are aware of the new powers, how they work and fit together. The guidance will be ready by the end of January.

Police National Computer: Wales

Don Touhig: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people resident in  (a) Islwyn constituency,  (b) Gwent and  (c) Wales who have not been convicted of a crime have their details on the Police National Computer.

Alan Campbell: The Police National Computer (PNC) is an operational tool and is not designed to produce the information requested. To obtain the information would incur a disproportionate cost as software would need to be designed, produced and tested to interrogate the PNC.

Prisoners: Repatriation

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many foreign nationals in UK prisons have received payments in respect of their return to their country of origin in the last three years; and what recent estimate has been made of the number of such foreign nationals who subsequently returned to the UK.

Phil Woolas: The chief executive of the UK Border Agency regularly writes to the Home Affairs Committee to give the most robust and accurate information. She intends to update the Committee on the Facilitated Returns Scheme in January this year.
	Measures are in place at the borders to stop the re-entry of such individuals who are subject to deportation or exclusion orders.

Proceeds of Crime

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what criteria the Serious and Organised Crime Agency uses to determine whether an  (a) individual and  (b) organisation has received a tainted gift.

Alan Campbell: When acting as a Law Enforcement Agency in the conduct of a criminal confiscation investigation, SOCA operates under the legislative parameters set out in the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA). Section 77 of POCA (section 225 in relation to Northern Ireland) sets out the criteria used to assess whether a gift, either to an individual or organisation, is tainted.

Security

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent assessment he has made of the most serious non-state threats to UK security.

David Hanson: The assessment of serious non-state threats to the UK is under constant review.
	The revised version of CONTEST, published in March 2009, is our counter-terrorism strategy and provides a comprehensive assessment of threat from international terrorism.
	An updated version of The National Security Strategy of the United Kingdom, 'Security for the Next Generation', was published in June 2009. The National Security Strategy sets out our assessment of the full range of security challenges the UK faces and our response to them.
	In summer 2008, the Government published a national-level risk register which sets out our assessment of the likelihood and potential impact of a range of different risks that may directly affect the United Kingdom.

Sussex Police: Detection Rates

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the crime detection rate of the Sussex police force has been in each year since 1996-97.

Alan Campbell: The information requested is given in the table.
	It should be noted that non-sanction detections which contribute to the overall detection rates have fallen in recent years reflecting a significant shift by many police forces away from recording detections where no further action is taken. From 1 April 2007 the rules governing recording of non-sanction detections were revised to reduce the scope within which they can be claimed to a very limited set of circumstances. For these reasons overall detection rates over time are not fully comparable.
	Detection rates are a ratio of crime detected in a period to crimes recorded in a period. They are not based on tracking whether individual crimes recorded in a period have eventually been detected.
	
		
			  Overall detection rate for offences recorded by the police in Sussex 
			  Period  Detection rate (Percentage) 
			 1996 29 
			 1997 26 
			 1997-98 26 
			 1998-99(1) 25 
			 1999-2000(2) 25 
			 2000-01 23 
			 2001-02 25 
			 2002-03(3) 24 
			 2003-04 24 
			 2004-05 25 
			 2005-06 30 
			 2006-07 31 
			 2007-08 32 
			 2008-09 26 
			 (1) The percentage of crimes detected in that financial year using the expanded coverage and revised counting rules which came into effect on 1 April 1998. (2) New instructions which clarified the rules for detecting crime were introduced on 1 April 1999. (3) The National Crime Recording Standard was introduced in 2002-03. Figures before and after that date are not directly comparable.

Young Offenders

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what data his Department collects on youth crime at middle layer super output area level; and where such data are published.

Alan Campbell: The Home Office does not collect any information on youth crime at middle super output area level as no recorded crime statistics are collected centrally on the age of either the victim or the alleged offender.
	Some police recorded crime data in terms of the number of offences recorded at middle super output area level have been released as experimental statistics on the Neighbourhood Statistics website at:
	http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk
	The most recent data currently published are for 2005-06, but it is planned to update the site in late 2010 with more recent crime data for the same/similar categories covering the majority of police forces in England and Wales.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

10 Downing Street: Repairs and Maintenance

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will place in the Library a copy of the submission made by English Heritage in relation to the Downing Street listed building works with planning application reference 09/00619/LBC.

Margaret Hodge: Westminster city council planning application reference 09/00619/ LBC refers to an application dated 22 January 2009 for listed building consent to refurbish existing ground floor toilets and form an opening to fit equipment to extract air from the existing first floor toilet in 10 Downing Street. English Heritage were notified of the application on 11 February 2009 and replied on 12 March 2009 authorising Westminster city council to determine the application for listed building consent as it saw fit. There was no requirement for English Heritage's specialist advice. A copy of this letter will be placed in the Library.

Arts Council England

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  how much was paid to Arts Council England's  (a) senior managers and  (b) board members in (i) performance-related and (ii) special bonus payments in each of the last three years; for what reason each such bonus was paid; how many members of the senior management team refused to accept a bonus; and by what criteria such bonuses are awarded;
	(2)  how much was paid to Arts Council England employees in  (a) performance-related and  (b) special bonus payments in each of the last three years;
	(3)  how many Arts Council England employees have participated in its special leave scheme in each of the last three years;
	(4)  how much Arts Council England intends to spend on the establishment of relaxation rooms for staff at its head office in Great Peter Street, London;
	(5)  how much Arts Council England has spent on employing Lothar Gotz to redecorate its head office in Great Peter Street, London;
	(6)  for what reason Arts Council England is to commission new artwork for its head office in Great Peter Street, London; how much Arts Council England has spent on advertising for such works; and if he will make a statement.
	(7)  what the cost to Arts Council England of public opinion research was in  (a) 2006-07,  (b) 2007-08 and  (c) 2008-09; and how much such funding it has allocated for 2009-10;
	(8)  how much Arts Council England spent on the advertisement of tenders for contracts in the last five years;
	(9)  how much Arts Council England has spent on media monitoring in each of the last three years;
	(10)  which  (a) advertising agencies and  (b) other organisations supplied consultancy services for advertising campaigns for Arts Council England in each of the last five years; and what the cost of these services was;
	(11)  how much Arts Council England has spent on advertising in  (a) weekly and  (b) regional newspapers in the last five years;
	(12)  how many complaints Arts Council England received from members of the public in each of the last five years.
	(13)  how many Arts Council England staff have  (a) been reprimanded,  (b) had their contract of employment terminated and  (c) been prosecuted for theft of property in each of the last three years;
	(14)  how much Arts Council England paid to recruitment agencies for the recruitment of temporary staff in each of the last five years;
	(15)  how much Arts Council England has spent on staff reward and recognition schemes in each of the last three years;
	(16)  how many Arts Council England employees have the word diversity in their job title;
	(17)  what flexible working arrangements were available to Arts Council England staff in each of the last five years; and how many staff participated in such arrangements in each such year;
	(18)  how many communication officers Arts Council England employs; and what the cost of their salaries was in 2008-09;
	(19)  how many Arts Council England employees have the word communication in their job title;
	(20)  how many Arts Council England staff participated in its employee relocation scheme in each of the last three years; and what the cost was of such arrangements in each such year;
	(21)  how many Arts Council England employees used the organisation's car allowance scheme in each of the last three years; and what the cost of the scheme was in each of those years;
	(22)  what the cost of essential car user lump sum payments to Arts Council England employees was for each vehicle engine size in each of the last three years;
	(23)  what the  (a) job description and  (b) salary scale is of each employee of Arts Council England's senior management team;
	(24)  how many Arts Council England employees received finance loans to buy a  (a) car,  (b) scooter and  (c) bicycle in each of the last three years; and what the cost of providing such loans was in each of those years;
	(25)  on how many occasions Arts Council England's whistleblowing procedure has been used in each of the last three years; when that policy was last reviewed; and if he will make a statement;
	(26)  what steps Arts Council England is taking to prevent bullying in its workplace on grounds of  (a) religion,  (b) ethnicity and  (c) sexual orientation; and how much Arts Council England plans to spend on such programmes in the next 12 months;
	(27)  how many Arts Council England staff have been subject to  (a) stage 1,  (b) stage 2 and  (c) stage 3 performance capability meetings in each of the last five years; and what proportion of such meetings have resulted in (i) a dismissal and (ii) a subsequent appeal against dismissal by a member of staff;
	(28)  how many diversity officers Arts Council England employs; and what the total cost of their annual salaries was in the latest year for which information is available;
	(29)  how many  (a) permanent and  (b) temporary staff Arts Council England employs in each region.
	(30)  how much Arts Council England has spent on legal fees in each of the last five years;
	(31)  how many complaints Arts Council England received in response to answers it provided under the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 in each year for which figures are available.
	(32)  what is most recent estimate is of the monetary value of Arts Council England's property portfolio.
	(33)  how many items are in Arts Council England's Arts Council Collection; how many of these items are on public display; and what the cost of storing items belonging to the collection was in the latest year for which information is available;
	(34)  how many items Arts Council England has purchased for its Arts Council Collection in each of the last three years; and how many such items are on public display;
	(35)  how many works belonging to Arts Council England's Arts Council Collection have been damaged  (a) in transit and  (b) at exhibition in each of the last five years;
	(36)  how much revenue Arts Council England generated from loaning items from the Arts Council Collection in each of the last three years;
	(37)  how many works belonging to Arts Council England's Arts Council Collection have been stolen in each of the last five years.

Margaret Hodge: The information requested is not held centrally by the Department.Accordingly, I have asked the chief executive of Arts Council England to write direct to my hon. Friend the Member for West Bromwich East. Copies of the reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Arts Council England

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what the total cost of Arts Council England's Arts Jobs website has been to date;
	(2)  how much Arts Council England spent on  (a) Christmas parties and  (b) staff entertainment in the last three years;
	(3)  how much Arts Council England spent on Christmas cards in each of the last three years;
	(4)  how much has been spent by Arts Council England on the acquisition of properties in each of the last five years; what the  (a) address,  (b) cost and  (c) date of acquisition was of each such property; how much has been realised by Arts Council England from the disposal of properties in each of the last five years; and what the (i) address, (ii) sale price and (iii) date of sale of each was;
	(5)  which  (a) food and  (b) drinks companies Arts Council England has contracted in each of the last three years; and how much Arts Council England has paid to each such company in each such year;
	(6)  how many  (a) drinks receptions and  (b) dinner parties Arts Council England has hosted in each of the last three years; and what the cost of each such event was;
	(7)  how much Arts Council England has spent on the design of its website in each of the last five years.

Margaret Hodge: The information requested is not held centrally by the Department. The issues raised are the operational responsibility of Arts Council England.Accordingly, I have asked the chief executive to write direct to my hon. Friend the Member for West Bromwich, East (Mr. Watson). Copies of the reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Arts Council England

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what works from the Government Art Collection are being used by Arts Council England.

Margaret Hodge: There are no Government Art Collection works of art being used by Arts Council England.

Arts Council England: Occupational Pensions

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 14 December 2009,  Official Report, column 665W, on Arts Council England: finance, whether Arts Council England may  (a) use proceeds from the National Lottery and  (b) grant-in-aid funding from his Department to reduce its pension fund deficit; and if he will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: Issues such as pay and pensions are operational matters for Arts Council England.
	However, as part of the administrative costs associated with its role as a national lottery distributor, and in accordance with the National Lottery Act, Arts Council England (ACE) may use proceeds from the national lottery to defray any expenses incurred by it, provided such expenses have been incurred as a result of ACE's national lottery work.
	ACE may use grant in aid funding to reduce its pension fund deficit.

Bell Towers: Expenditure

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what bell towers have received grants from public funds in the last 12 months.

Margaret Hodge: Funds are available from public sources to support repairs to bell towers where they are part of listed church buildings.
	English Heritage and the Heritage Lottery Fund jointly operate a grant scheme to support repairs to listed places of worship. Additionally, the Government operates a Listed Places of Worship Grant scheme that makes grants equivalent to the VAT incurred in making repairs to listed buildings primarily in use as places of worship.
	However data are not available under either scheme about the amounts disbursed for works to bell towers, or the locations of bell towers that have benefited.

Casinos

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when he expects the proposed new and large casinos to be opened.

Gerry Sutcliffe: This is not a matter for central Government. It is the responsibility of the 16 local authorities permitted to offer new casino premises licences under the Gambling Act 2005 to determine the timetable for the opening of the proposed new small and large casinos.

Departmental Computers

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport which websites his Department's staff are blocked from accessing on departmental networked computers.

Si�n Simon: My Department uses SmartFilter to block access to web sites which are deemed unsuitable. The following categories of sites are blocked.
	Anonymizers
	Criminal Activities
	Game/Cartoon Violence
	Drugs
	Extreme
	Hate/Discrimination
	Illegal Software
	Malicious Sites
	Nudity
	Provocative Attire
	Phishing
	P2P/File Sharing
	Spam URLs
	Pornography
	Spyware/Adware
	Tobacco
	Gruesome Content
	Violence
	Two sites blocked that do not fall into these categories are:
	www.filthyjokes.freeserve.co.uk
	internationallottobv.net
	My Department blocks certain sites based on central guidance about potential threats, as is standard practice on security matters we do not publish this list.

Departmental Consultants

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what expenditure his Department incurred on external consultancy fees in each of the last five years.

Si�n Simon: holding answer 11 January 2010
	The table shows the total expenditure incurred on external consultancy fees in each of the last five years.
	
		
			   £ 
			 2009-10(1) 622,140.47 
			 2008-09 1,219,866.54 
			 2007-08 1,162,919.27 
			 2006-07 886,190.79 
			 2005-06 1,161,338.03 
			 (1) To date only

Departmental Manpower

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many press officers are employed by his Department; and what the staffing cost for press officers has been in each of the last five years.

Si�n Simon: holding answer 11 January 2010
	The number of press officers currently employed by the Department is 11.
	The cost for press officers in each of the last five years were:
	
		
			   Cost of press officers (£) 
			 2004-05 466,206 
			 2005-06 (1)550,124 
			 2006-07 (1)733,412 
			 2007-08 (1)682,858 
			 2008-09 (1)706,643 
			 (1 )This includes press officers working on the Olympics.

Departmental Surveys

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will place in the Library a copy of the results of his Department's most recent staff survey; which organisation carried out the survey; and what the cost of the survey was.

Margaret Hodge: DCMS will be publishing its October 2009 staff survey results on the DCMS website in April 2010. Following publication we will place a copy of the results in the Library.
	The supplier for the DCMS staff survey in October 2009 was ORC International who were procured by Cabinet Office to deliver the first cross-civil service People Survey.
	The People Survey replaced all existing staff surveys in the civil service with a single questionnaire.
	The cost of the 2009-10 People Survey for DCMS was £8,796.56. By procuring a single supplier for staff surveys in 2009-10 the civil service has saved 35 per cent. on the total cost of staff surveys in 2008-09.

Gambling

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what steps the Gambling Commission is taking to seek to ensure that the licensing objectives are not adversely affected by the use by UK customers of online gambling companies operating in non-EEA white listed countries;
	(2)  what factors are taken into account by the Government in deciding whether to permit a gambling operator based outside the EEA to apply for a place on the white list;
	(3)  what recent assessment has been made of the effects on the regulation of operators of online gambling services who are located outside the United Kingdom of the operation of the white list system;
	(4)  what recent steps the Gambling Commission has taken to increase the effectiveness of the regulation of online gambling;
	(5)  what steps he is taking to ensure that UK-registered online gambling operators which are located outside the UK contribute to the cost of research, education and treatment in respect of problem gambling;
	(6)  what recent steps the Gambling Commission has taken to assess the effects on the promotion of the licensing objectives of online gambling; and how much funding has been allocated to the Gambling Commission for the purpose of making such assessments in the last five years;
	(7)  what powers the Gambling Commission have to  (a) regulate and  (b) sanction an operator of online gambling services in circumstances where the operator is located outside the United Kingdom.

Gerry Sutcliffe: I laid a written statement before the House on 7 January outlining proposals, and announcing a consultation, for the future regulation of remote gambling in Great Britain.
	The Statement, which can be found online at:
	http://www.culture.gov.uk/reference_library/media_releases/6562.aspx
	recognises that whilst there are protections in place for British consumers gambling online with operators based outside Britain, there are differences in the approach of other regulators in respect of regulatory standards and requirements when compared to those required by the Gambling Commission.
	I have therefore decided to consult on changing the existing system, so that all operators who want to target British consumers have to adhere to the provisions of the Gambling Act, its secondary legislation and the Gambling Commission's standards. This would include a requirement for operators to set out how they will contribute towards research, education and treatment of problem gambling in the UK. I expect the consultation to include consideration of issues relating to the white list, which has been temporarily closed to new applications since 30 April 2009 when my Department began to look in detail at these issues.
	I shall ask the chief executive of the Gambling Commission to write to the hon. Member about the steps the Commission has already taken to increase the effectiveness of the regulation of online gambling; the allocation of funding to assess the effect of online gambling on the promotion of the licensing objectives; and the powers it has available to regulate and sanction online operators based outside of Britain. Copies of the response will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Gambling Act 2005

Natascha Engel: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many prosecutions have been made as a result of complaints made to his Department under the chain-gifting provisions of the Gambling Act 2005.

Gerry Sutcliffe: My Department has not received any complaints under the chain-gifting sections in the Gambling Act 2005. The Ministry of Justice advise that from 2005 to 2007, the years for which information is available, no court proceedings at the magistrates court in England and Wales were recorded on this issue.

Gambling: Crime

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent steps the Gambling Commission has taken to  (a) estimate the monetary value of the illegal gambling market and  (b) reduce the incidence of illegal gambling.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The information requested is a matter for the Gambling Commission. Accordingly, I have asked the chief executive to write to the hon. Member for Bath (Mr. Foster). Copies of the reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Gambling: Crime

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent representations he has received on the performance of the Gambling Commission on tackling illegal gambling.

Gerry Sutcliffe: I regularly receive representations, both verbal and written, from trade associations and individual businesses within the gambling industry about a range of issues relating to gambling regulation, including the Gambling Commission's role in relation to tackling illegal gambling.

Gaming Machines: Taxation

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent discussions he has had with  (a) HM Treasury and  (b) the Gambling Commission on the tax status of category B3A gaming machines.

Gerry Sutcliffe: I have not had any discussions with HM Treasury or the Gambling Commission about category B3A gaming machines. I am aware that representations have been made to the Government in relation to the tax status of these machines. However, issues regarding taxation are a matter for my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer.

Horse Racing: Betting

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent discussions he has had on the long-term future of the horserace betting levy.

Gerry Sutcliffe: I meet regularly with chair and chief executive of the Horserace Betting Levy Board, most recently on 28 October 2009, and I will do so again later this month. A modernised and appropriate funding mechanism is important for the purpose of securing the long-term future of British horse racing. However, my view is also that the levy must continue until there is a viable alternative to replace it.

Licensed Premises

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many licensed premises there were per 1,000 of population in each London borough in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Alcohol, Entertainment and Late Night Refreshment Licensing Statistical Bulletin collects the number of premises licences and club premises certificates issued under the provisions of the Licensing Act 2003.
	The following table shows this by individual London borough (licensing authority) as at 31 March 2007, 2008 and 2009 per 1,000 total population.
	
		
			  Premises licences and club premises certificates per thousand population 
			   31 March each year 
			  Local authority name  2007  2008  2009 
			 Barking and Dagenham 2.1 2.3 2.5 
			 Barnet 2.7 2.8 3.9 
			 Bexley 2.4 2.4 2.4 
			 Brent 3.0 2.9 3.1 
			 Bromley 2.6 4.1 3.0 
			 Camden n/a 6.6 6.8 
			 City of London Corporation (including Middle and Inner Temple) 84.1 90.4 91.5 
			 Croydon 2.8 3.0 3.0 
			 Ealing 2.9 2.9 3.1 
			 Enfield 2.5 2.6 2.7 
			 Greenwich 2.9 3.3 3.5 
			 Hackney 3.7 4.0 4.4 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 4.5 4.4 5.0 
			 Haringey 3.2 3.5 4.1 
			 Harrow 2.4 2.5 2.4 
			 Havering 2.1 2.3 2.3 
			 Hillingdon 3.1 3.1 3.1 
			 Hounslow n/a 3.3 3.4 
			 Islington 6.2 5.8 6.3 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 5.6 5.5 5.5 
			 Kingston upon Thames 3.0 3.4 3.4 
			 Lambeth 4.1 4.3 4.6 
			 Lewisham 2.9 3.0 3.2 
			 Merton 2.6 2.9 2.8 
			 Newham 2.7 2.9 3.0 
			 Redbridge 2.2 2.4 2.4 
			 Richmond upon Thames 4.3 4.5 4.4 
			 Southwark n/a 4.0 4.2 
			 Sutton 2.3 2.3 2.5 
			 Tower Hamlets 3.6 3.9 4.2 
			 Waltham Forest 2.7 3.3 3.4 
			 Wandsworth 3.7 3.7 3.7 
			 Westminster 12.5 12.6 12.9 
			 London total 3.2 3.8 4.0 
		
	
	The number of licences in 2007 have been adjusted by Mid-2007 Population estimates (produced by the Office of National Statistics). The number of licences in 2008 and 2009 have both been adjusted by Mid-2008 Population estimates (latest available estimates). Camden, Hounslow, Middle Temple and Southwark did not submit a response in the 2007 collection, so their numbers of licences in this year is unknown.

Olympic Games 2012: Facilities

Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when the starting gate review of the 2012 Sports Legacy plans will be published; and if he will place a copy in the Library on publication.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The OGC Starting Gate review was carried out for my Department on the basis of confidential discussions. We have provided copies of the report to those who participated in the process, but have no current plans to publish it.

Policing and Crime Act 2009

Daniel Rogerson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when he plans to make an order to commence section 33 of the Policing and Crime Act 2009.

Gerry Sutcliffe: This is a matter for the Home Office who have advised that they plan to commence sections 28, 29, 30, 31 and 33 on the 29 January.
	They are currently developing the guidance to accompany these provisions which will be released in late January/early February 2010.

WOMEN AND EQUALITY

Departmental Sick Leave

Grant Shapps: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many working days were lost due to illness of employees within her Department in each of the last three years; and how many of those were attributed to stress in each year.

Maria Eagle: The Government Equalities Office established its present electronic Performance Management System in October 2008. Prior to this, records were not kept centrally. For the period 6 October 2008 until 31 December 2009 the Government Equalities Office recorded 211 working days lost due to illness of employees and 26 of these days were attributed to stress.

CABINET OFFICE

Central Office of Information

Grant Shapps: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  how much has been spent by the Central Office of Information on news and public relations in 2009-10;
	(2)  how much the Central Office of Information has spent on strategic consultancy in each year from 2004-05 to 2008-09;
	(3)  how much the Central Office of Information spent on public relations in each of the last five years;
	(4)  how much the Central Office of Information spent on  (a) media and  (b) non-media advertising in each of the last five years.

Tessa Jowell: I have asked the chief executive of the Central Office of Information to reply to the hon. Member.
	 Letter from Mark Lund, dated 7 January 2010:
	As Chief Executive of the Central Office of Information (COI), I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question on COI Turnover (309830,3,7,42).
	COI turnover figures for the areas requested for the previous five years are published in our annual report and accounts.
	Copies of the COI Annual Report and Accounts are placed in the Library of the House and are also available from our website:
	www.coi.gov.uk

Central Office of Information: Publications

Grant Shapps: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the  (a) total cost and  (b) printing cost was of the Central Office of Information's book, How Public Sector Advertising Works.

Tessa Jowell: I have asked the chief executive of the Central Office of Information to reply to the honourable Member.
	 Letter from Mark Lund, dated 7 January 2010:
	As Chief Executive of the Central Office of Information (COI), I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question on the cost of the book, How Public Sector Advertising Works (309846).
	The total cost of producing the book was £70,000.
	A separate printing cost is not available but is included in the Publishing cost which was £24,000.

Death: Stroud

David Drew: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the 10 most frequently recorded causes of death for  (a) men,  (b) women,  (c) boys under the age of 18 years and  (d) girls under the age of 18 years in Stroud constituency were in each of the last 10 years.

Angela Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Jil Matheson, dated December 2009:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking what the 10 most frequently recorded causes of death for (a) men, (b) women, (c) boys under the age of 18 years and (d) girls under the age of 18 years in Stroud constituency were in each of the last 10 years. (309129)
	The tables attached present the 10 most frequently recorded causes of death(1), for (a) males aged 18 years and over (Table 1) and (b) females aged 18 years and over (Table 2), in Stroud parliamentary constituency, for the years 2001 to 2008 (the latest year available).
	Due to the small numbers of deaths of (c) boys under the age of 18 years and (d) girls under the age of 18 years, equivalent information for frequently recorded causes of death could not be produced.
	Individual causes of death are coded by ONS using die International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10). The causes of death shown in the tables are groups of codes designed for the tabulation of deaths according to 'main' causes(2). Equivalent information is not readily available for years before 2001, when an earlier version of the International Classification of Diseases was in use.
	(1) In some years, more than 10 causes of death are presented where the numbers of deaths were the same as those for the 10th most frequent cause.
	(2) Griffiths, C, Rooney, C, and Brock. A. (2005) 'Leading causes of death in England and Wales-how should we group causes?' Health Statistics Quarterly 28. 6-17.
	
		
			  Table 1: Most frequent causes of death classified according to the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10), males aged 18 years and over, Stroud parliamentary constituency, 2001-08( 1, 2, 3) 
			   Years when this was a main cause of death for males  
			  Cause of death( 4)  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008  ICD-10 Codes 
			 Aortic aneurysm and dissection - - - * - * - * 171 
			 Cerebrovascular diseases * * * * * * * * 160-169 
			 Chronic lower respiratory diseases * * * * * * * * J40-J47 
			 Dementia and Alzheimer's disease * * * * * * * * F01, F03, G30 
			 Diabetes * - - - - - - - E10-E14 
			 Heart failure and complications and ill-defined heart disease * * - - - - - - 150-151 
			 Influenza and pneumonia * * * * * * * * J10-J18 
			 Ischaemic heart diseases * * * * * * * * 120-125 
			 Malignant neoplasm (cancer) of colon, sigmoid, rectum and anus * * * * * * * * C18-C21 
			 Malignant (cancer) neoplasm of oesophagus - - - - * - * - C15 
			 Malignant neoplasm (cancer) of pancreas - - * - - - - - C25 
			 Malignant neoplasm (cancer) of prostate * * * * * * * * C61 
			 Malignant neoplasm (cancer) of trachea, bronchus and lung * * * * * * * * C33-C34 
			 Malignant neoplasms (cancer) of lymphoid, haematopoietic and related tissue * * * * * * * * C81-C96 
			 Parkinson's disease - * - - - - * - G20 
			 Suicide and injury/poisoning of undetermined intent - - - - * - - - X60-X84, Y10-Y34 exc. Y33.9 
			 (1) Most frequent causes of death recorded as the underlying cause in male deaths registered in the year in question. These causes accounted for 65 per cent. of all male deaths in Stroud parliamentary constituency between 2001 and 2008. (2) Cause of death in England and Wales is defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) for 2001 onwards. (3) Based on boundaries as of 2009. (4) The words in brackets have been added for clarity and are not part of the International Classification of Diseases. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Most frequent causes of death classified according to the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10), females aged 18 years and over, Stroud parliamentary constituency, 2001 to 2008( 1, 2, 3) 
			   Years when this was a main cause of death for females  
			  Cause of death( 4)  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008  ICD-10 Codes 
			 Cerebrovascular diseases * * * * * * * * 160-169 
			 Chronic lower respiratory diseases * * * * * * * * J40-J47 
			 Dementia and Alzheimer's disease * * * * * * * * F01, F03, G30 
			 Diabetes * - - - - - - - E10-E14 
			 Diseases of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue - - - * - - - - M00-M99 
			 Diseases of the urinary system - - - - - - * - N00-N39 
			 Heart failure and complications and ill-defined heart disease - - * * * - - - 150-151 
			 Influenza and pneumonia * * * * * * * * J10-J18 
			 Intestinal infectious diseases - - - - - * - - A00-A09 
			 Ischaemic heart diseases * * * * * * * * 120-125 
			 Malignant neoplasm (cancer) of colon, sigmoid, rectum and anus * * * - * * - * C18-C21 
			 Malignant neoplasm (cancer) of ovary - * - - - - - - C56 
			 Malignant neoplasm (cancer) of pancreas - - - * - * * - C25 
			 Malignant neoplasm (cancer) of trachea, bronchus and lung * * * * * * * * C33-C34 
			 Malignant neoplasm (cancer) of uterus - - - - - - - * C53-C55 
			 Malignant neoplasms (cancer) of breast * * * * * * * * C50 
			 Malignant neoplasms (cancer) of lymphoid, haematopoietic and related tissue * * * * * - * * C81-C96 
			 (1) Most frequent causes of death recorded as the underlying cause in female deaths registered in the year in question. These causes accounted for 62 per cent. of all female deaths in Stroud parliamentary constituency between 2001 and 2008. (2) Cause of death in England and Wales is defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) for 2001 onwards. (3) Based on boundaries as of 2009. (4) The words in brackets have been added for clarity and are not part of the International Classification of Diseases.

Death: Weather

David Davies: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many people have died from injuries and illnesses related to  (a) cold and  (b) hot weather in each of the last five years.

Angela Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Steve Penneck, dated January 2010:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking how many people have died from injuries and illnesses related to (a) cold and (b) hot weather in each of the last five years. (310484)
	There are no official definitions of 'heat-related' and 'cold-related' deaths. Estimates of the excess deaths during a summer heat wave are calculated only when temperatures remain abnormally high over a sustained period. The most severe heat wave of recent times occurred in August 2003. During July 2006, there were also several days when heat wave threshold temperatures were reached in one or more regions. Table 1 provides the number of excess deaths during these hot periods.
	Estimates of excess winter deaths are calculated annually, and are based on the difference between the number of deaths during the four winter months (December to March) and the average number of deaths during the preceding four months (August to November) and the following four months (April to July). It is not possible to say whether these deaths were cold-related. Table 2 provides the number of excess winter deaths that occurred in England and Wales from 2004-05 to 2008-09 (the latest figures available).
	
		
			  Table 1: Excess mortality during periods when temperatures were above the heat wave threshold in one or more regions, England and Wales, 2003-08( 1,2,3,4,5) 
			  Dates  Number of excess deaths (persons)  Percentage increas e in mortality above baseline (percentage ) 
			 4 to 13 August 2003(1,)( )(2) 2,139 16 
			 1 to 7 July 2006(3,)( )(4) No excess 0 
			 16 to 28 July 2006(3,)( )(4) 680 4 
			 (1) Final data based on deaths occurring each day in this period. (2) Excess mortality was calculated as observed daily deaths in 2003 minus the baseline (average 1998 to 2002) expected mortality over the same time period. (3) Estimated data based on deaths occurring each day in this period. (4) Excess mortality was calculated as observed daily deaths in 2006 minus baseline (average 2001 to 2005) expected mortality over the same time period. (5) Figures for England and Wales include deaths of non-residents. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2 :  Excess winter deaths, England and Wales, 2004-05 to 2008-09( 1,2,3,4) 
			   Excess winter deaths (persons)  EWD Index( 5) 
			 2004-05 31,640 19.5 
			 2005-06 25,270 15.8 
			 2006-07 23,740 15.0 
			 2007-08 24,690 15.6 
			 2008-09 36,700 23.8 
			 (1) Estimates of excess winter deaths are based on the difference between the number of deaths during the four winter months (December to March) and the average number of deaths during the preceding four months (August to November) and the following four months (April to July). (2) Figures are based on deaths occurring in each month. (3) Figures for 2004-05 to 2007-08 are final, figures for 2008-09 are provisional. Final figures are rounded to the nearest 10, provisional figures are rounded to the nearest 100. (4) Figures for England and Wales include deaths of non-residents. (5) The excess winter mortality index is calculated as the excess winter deaths divided by the average non-winter deaths, expressed as a percentage.

Departmental Buildings

John Baron: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much was spent on works and refurbishment to offices allocated to the Prime Minister in the last 12 months.

Angela Smith: Cost on the works and refurbishment to offices allocated to the Prime Minister in the last 12 months will be available only when the Department's resource accounts have been fully audited and laid before Parliament.

Departmental Buildings

Sarah Teather: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the  (a) area and  (b) estimated value is of (i) vacant and (ii) occupied office space (A) owned and (B) rented by her Department.

Angela Smith: Other than one building of 826m(2) which is vacant pending disposal, and 85m(2) of office space at the Emergency Planning College (EPC) in Easingwold, Yorkshire, the Cabinet Office is not responsible for any vacant freehold office space. The agreed sale price of the building being disposed of is £5.37 million. The 85m(2) of office space at the EPC is an integral part of the EPC estate and is not valued separately. The Cabinet Office is responsible for 1,287m(2) of vacant leased office space and the annual rent for this space is £620,000. The vacant space is being marketed towards achieving a disposal.

Population

Frank Field: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what account the 2008 population projections issued by the Office for National Statistics on 21 October 2009 took of recent trends of reductions in  (a) net migration and  (b) net migration from the A8 EU member states.

Angela Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated January 2010:
	.
	The 2008-based national population projections assume future net migration to the UK of +180,000 a year from mid-2014 onwards, with slightly higher net migration assumed for the first few years of the projection period. These assumptions of future net migration are based on past trends in net long-term international migration to the UK and are calculated using a standard methodology first introduced for the 1991-based projections see national population projections reference volume available at:
	http://www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=4611
	The assumptions for the 2008-based projections are based upon final estimates of long-term international migration up to the end of 2007, plus provisional International Passenger Survey (IPS) estimates of long-term international migration for the year ending December 2008. Thus the calculation of the assumptions took into account the decline in long-term international net migration indicated by the provisional IPS estimates published by ONS on 27 August 2009.
	With regard to net migration from the A8 EU member states, the 2008-based projections assume annual net migration from these countries (plus Bulgaria and Romania) declining from +25,000 for 2009-10 to zero for 2014-15 onwards. Again, the calculation of these assumptions took into account the decline in long-term international net migration from the A8 EU member states indicated by the provisional IPS estimates published by ONS on 27 August 2009.

Valuation Office Agency: Training

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office with reference to the answer of 15 June 2009,  Official Report, column 55W, on the Valuation Office: training, if she will place in the Library a copy of each document for the Staff Inspection Techniques training course provided by the National School of Government to the Valuation Office Agency.

Tessa Jowell: This is a matter for the National School of Government. I have asked the principal and chief executive to assist by writing to you.
	 Letter from Rod Clark, dated January 2010:
	In the Written Ministerial Statement to the House on 9 January 2007 (Official Report Col 5WS), the then Parliamentary Secretary for the Cabinet Office (Pat McFadden MP) announced that the National School of Government was now a Non Ministerial Department. Consequently, the Minister for the Cabinet Office has asked me to reply to your Parliamentary Questions about the National School of Government.
	The National School operates in a commercial environment with a business model which requires the full operating costs of the department to be recovered from the products and services provided to clients and customers. The publication of the information requested could prejudice the ability of the department to meet its financial target. I have, therefore, concluded that it would not be helpful to place a copy of the materials in the Library of the House.
	I will, however, send this information to you.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Boilers: Scotland

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what discussions his Department has had with the Scottish Executive on the possible extension to Scotland of the boiler scrappage scheme.

Joan Ruddock: The Department informed the Scottish Executive of its intention to operate a boiler scrappage scheme in England. As the scheme is an energy efficiency measure it is a devolved matter and it is for the Scottish Executive to take a decision on whether to operate a similar scheme in Scotland.

Energy Efficiency Schemes: Scotland

Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will discuss with the Scottish Executive the location of the test hubs referred to in the UK Low Carbon Transition Plan.

Joan Ruddock: The Department of Energy and Climate Change has discussed the location of the test hubs referred to in the UK Low Carbon Transition Plan with the Scottish Executive. The Scottish Executive decided, in this case, that the test hubs should not be located in Scotland.

Energy: Prices

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent estimate he has made of the level of the average household  (a) gas and  (b) electricity bill; what the average bill was in each case in 1997; and if he will make a statement.

David Kidney: The Department's latest estimates for the average annual domestic energy bills and provisional estimates for the year to 2009 and are published in 'Quarterly Energy Prices', published in December 2009:
	http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/statistics/publications/prices/prices.aspx
	For an average consumer using 18,000 kWh of gas per year and paying their bills on receipt (standard credit), the average bill for gas in Great Britain was £328 in 1997 and £717 in 2009. Adjusting for the effects of inflation, in real terms equivalent bills were £349 in 1997 and £574 in 2009 relative to prices in 2000.
	For an average consumer using 3,300 kWh of electricity per year and paying their bills on receipt (standard credit), the average bill for electricity in the UK was £285 in 1997 and £461 in 2009. Adjusting for the effects of inflation, in real terms equivalent bills were £303 in 1997 and £369 in 2009 relative to prices in 2000.
	UK domestic gas and electricity prices are the lowest and the fourth lowest in the EU15 respectively, with latest figures for the period January to June 2009.
	Competitive energy markets are a key element of our energy policy. We think that companies competing for consumers is the most effective way of driving down energy prices. However, we are in close contact with the regulator and are monitoring retail energy markets closely. Government and the regulator between them have a number of potential options and we will be ready to take further action if we believe it is both necessary and in the customers' interests.
	Recognising that energy is an essential commodity to vulnerable customers the Government negotiated the current voluntary agreement with suppliers to address the prices aspect of fuel poverty. The voluntary agreement comes to an end in March 2011 however, and we have included powers in the recently introduced Energy Bill to enable us to put social price support on to a statutory footing, building on the success of these voluntary arrangements. As announced in the Pre Budget Report, the Government will require energy suppliers to make available £300 million per annum by 2013-14 .This is double what energy suppliers have agreed to provide in the final year of the voluntary agreement and will mean being able to help more of the vulnerable households with their energy bills.
	The Government are also actively promoting energy efficiency measures, as outlined in the Low Carbon Transition Plan:
	http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/publications/lc_trans_plan/lc_trans_plan.aspx

Fuel Poverty

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps his Department has taken to eradicate fuel poverty in 2009; what steps he plans to take in the first six months of 2010; and if he will make a statement.

David Kidney: The Government have a strong package of measures to help reduce fuel poverty among households. This is centred on tackling the three root causes of fuel poverty:
	Reducing the demand for energy by improving home energy efficiency through schemes such as Warm Front, Carbon Emissions Reduction Target, Community Energy Saving Programme and the Decent Homes Standard.
	Ensuring competitive energy prices through a robust system of regulation aimed to protect all consumers.
	Raising real incomes, including through winter fuel payments and cold weather payments alongside the wider tax and benefit system and through benefit entitlement checks under the Warm Front scheme.
	More specifically, during 2009, the Government have:
	Increased the grant limits for eligible households under the Warm Front scheme to £3,500 (or £6,000 where oil or new low carbon technology is recommended).
	Launched the £350 million Community Energy Saving Programme to improve household energy efficiency and permanently lower fuel bills in areas of low income, where households are likely to have a greater than average propensity to be in fuel poverty.
	Made changes to the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target so that from August 2009 an estimated £1.9 billion will be directed among the priority group of low income and elderly households up to 2011.
	In 2010 the Government shall:
	From April, increase the funding for the Warm Front scheme by £150 million to £345 million bringing the total funding to just over £1.1 billion for the current spending period.
	Continue to promote legislation to implement mandated social price support schemes once the current voluntary agreement with suppliers comes to an end in 2011. These schemes will provide more of the most vulnerable consumers with help towards their energy costs.
	Explore how best to provide help to the most vulnerable households within the Priority Group under the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target for the proposed extension from April 2011 to December 2012. A consultation was launched on 21 December 2009.
	The Government, through their fuel poverty review, will continue to build and strengthen the evidence base on fuel poverty and explore better ways of targeting help at the most vulnerable fuel poor households.
	The Government's new Strategy for Household Energy Management, building on the Heat and Energy Saving Strategy consultation in February 2009, will set out the Government's plans for delivering and financing household energy management to all households, including the most vulnerable.
	Furthermore the Government want all households to play a part in generating renewable energy. Although feed-in tariffs and the Renewable Heat Incentive will make payments over the life of installations, low-income households may still find it difficult to meet upfront costs. Building on the experience of Pay as You Save pilot project, the Government announced in the pre-budget report, that we will consult on measures to help low-income households take advantage of these clean energy cash-back schemes.

Fuel Poverty: Leeds

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps his Department is taking to reduce the level of fuel poverty in Leeds North West constituency.

David Kidney: The Government have a strong package of measures to help reduce fuel poverty among households. This is centred on tackling the three root causes of fuel poverty:
	Reducing the demand for energy by improving home energy efficiency through schemes such as Warm Front, Carbon Emissions Reduction Target, Community Energy Saving programme and the Decent Homes Standard;
	Ensuring competitive energy prices through a robust system of regulation aimed to protect all consumers; and
	Raising real incomes, including through winter fuel payments and cold weather payments alongside the wider tax and benefit system and through benefit entitlement checks under the Warm Front scheme.
	More specifically, during 2009, the Government have:
	Increased the grant limits for eligible households under the Warm Front scheme to £3,500 (or £6,000 where oil or new low carbon technology is recommended)
	Launched the £350 million Community Energy Saving programme to improve household energy efficiency and permanently lower fuel bills in areas of low income, where households are likely to have a greater than average propensity to be in fuel poverty
	Made changes to the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target so that from August 2009 an estimated £1.9 billion will be directed amongst the priority group of low income and elderly households up to 2011.
	In 2010 the Government shall:
	From April, increase the funding for the Warm Front scheme by £150 million to £345 million bringing the total funding to just over £1.1 billion for the current spending period. The scheme assisted 309 homes in 2008-09 in the Leeds North West constituency in the last year alone.
	Continue to promote legislation to implement mandated social price support schemes once the current voluntary agreement with suppliers comes to an end in 2011. These schemes will provide more of the most vulnerable consumers with help towards their energy costs.
	Explore how best to provide help to the most vulnerable households within the Priority Group under the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target for the proposed extension from April 2011 to December 2012. A consultation was launched on 21 December 2009
	The Government, through their fuel poverty review, will continue to build and strengthen the evidence base on fuel poverty and explore better ways of targeting help at the most vulnerable fuel poor households.
	The Government's new Strategy for Household Energy Management, building on the Heat and Energy Saving Strategy consultation in February 2009, will set out the Government's plans for delivering and financing household energy management to all households, including the most vulnerable.
	Furthermore the Government wants all households to play a part in generating renewable energy. Although feed-in tariffs and the Renewable Heat Incentive will make payments over the life of installations, low-income households may still find it difficult to meet upfront costs. Building on the experience of Pay as You Save pilot project, the Government announced in the pre-budget report, that we will consult on measures to help low-income households take advantage of these clean energy cash-back schemes.

Government Departments: Carbon Emissions

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what amount of carbon dioxide emissions arose from Government operations in  (a) 2000 and  (b) the most recent year for which figures are available.

Ian Pearson: I have been asked to reply.
	Government are committed to achieving a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions from its estate of 12.5 per cent. and from administrative road travel by 15 per cent. both by 2010-11. Progress against these targets is reported annually in the Sustainable Development in Government report.
	The latest assessment of performance, published in December 2009 shows that emissions from the office estate in 2008-09 were 2,593,725 tonnes of CO2, representing a reduction of 10 per cent. against the 1999-2000 baseline year. Emissions from administrative road vehicles are baselined against a 2005-06 year, and at 2008-09 were 149,269 tonnes, representing a reduction of 17 per cent.
	This information was published on the 18 December 2009, and is available on the OGC website:
	http://www.ogc.gov.uk/sustainability_programme _progress.asp
	Information on reporting years prior to 2008-09 was collated and published by the Sustainable Development Commission (SDC) can be found on the SDC website:
	http://www.sd-commission.org.uk

Housing: Energy

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent discussions  (a) Ministers and  (b) officials in his Department have had with house builders on inclusion of (i) solar water heating and (ii) photovoltaic electricity generation technology in new build homes.

Joan Ruddock: The Communities and Local Government Department (CLG) has announced a policy that all new homes will be zero carbon from 2016, with interim changes to the building regulations in 2010 and 2013.
	The Minister for Housing and the Minister of State for Energy and Climate Change participate in the 2016 Task Force which brings together senior representatives of industry and other stakeholders to oversee the progress of the zero carbon homes policy. House builders via the Home Builders Federation are represented on that body.
	CLG is providing financial support to the Zero Carbon Hub, an industry-led body which is leading on the practical delivery of the policy. The Hub has established a number of task groups which bring together relevant stakeholders including house builders. Government observers on this group includes officials from this department who are therefore engaging with the relevant stakeholders on an ongoing basis.
	CLG has been consulting on the proposed changes to Part L of the Building Regulations for 2010. This process has resulted in engagement with house builders throughout the consultation. As part of that process officials have discussed the range of renewable technologies for deployment in new build including solar thermal and solar photovoltaic technologies.

Power Stations: Blythe Bridge

William Cash: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will initiate a public inquiry into the proposed Blythe Bridge power station.

David Kidney: We have yet to receive the views of the relevant planning authorities, Staffordshire Moorlands district council and Staffordshire county council. Should either of them object then a public inquiry is mandatory under schedule 8 to the Electricity Act 1989. Even if neither council objects, the Secretary of State has the discretion to hold a public inquiry into the application in light of other representations he receives. The hon. Member will be informed of his decision, including whether or not a public inquiry will be held, in due course.

Renewable Energy

William Cash: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what research he has undertaken into the willingness of people to accept  (a) wind turbines and  (b) other renewable energy projects in their local areas.

David Kidney: The Government conduct a Renewable Energy Awareness and Attitudes Research survey each year and publishes the results on the DECC website. In the 2009 survey, support for renewable energy remained high with over eight in 10 respondents interviewed saying they would support it, and 62 per cent. saying they would be happy to live within 5 km of a wind power development.

Warm Front Scheme

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many applications to the Warm Front Scheme for  (a) heating,  (b) insulation and  (c) heating and insulation were approved in (i) Southend and (ii) England and Wales in each of the last two years.

David Kidney: The following tables show the number of households that received  (a) heating,  (b) insulation and  (c) heating and insulation in (i) Southend and (ii) England under the Warm Front scheme in each of the last two complete years. For convenience, the tables also include the number of households assisted in this year to date.
	
		
			  (i) Southend 
			   2007-08  2008-09  2009-10 to date (31 December) 
			  (a) Heating only 437 506 464 
			  (b) Insulation only 757 872 1,038 
			  (c) Both 439 506 434 
		
	
	
		
			  (ii) England 
			   2007-08  2008-09  2009-10 to date (31 December) 
			  (a) Heating only 92,894 96,540 70,050 
			  (b) Insulation only 66,135 59,373 42,479 
			  (c) Both 18,056 24,081 24,472 
		
	
	Fuel poverty is a devolved matter, as such, the Warm Front scheme operates in England only and is not active in Wales.

Warm Front Scheme: Leeds

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many households in Leeds, North-West constituency received assistance under the Warm Front scheme in 2008-09.

David Kidney: The Warm Front scheme assisted 309 households in Leeds, North-West during scheme year 2008-09.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Affordable Housing

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what work the Audit Commission is undertaking on behalf of the Tenant Services Authority in relation to inspections of social housing.

Barbara Follett: This is an operational matter for the Audit Commission, and I will ask the Chief Executive of the Audit Commission to write to the hon. Member direct.
	 Letter from Steve Bundred, dated 12 January 2010:
	Your Parliamentary question outlined above has been passed to me to reply.
	Since the Tenant Services Authority (TSA) was established on 1 December 2008, the Audit Commission has undertaken the following inspections of registered social landlords requested by the Authority:
	Twenty one full inspections, covering all tenant services, are now completed and are published on the Audit Commission website http://www.audit-commission.govuk. A list is attached for ease of reference.
	Fifteen focused inspections, covering a limited number of tenant services that are undertaken at short notice, completed and published, covering judgements for both current services and prospects for improvement.
	Eighteen focused inspections, covering a limited number of tenant services, undertaken at short notice, completed and published in respect of judgements of the current services. Judgements for future prospects of service improvement, following local consultation between tenants and their landlord, will be published in due course.
	Six further full inspections are in progress or programmed for completion by March 2010.
	Twelve focused inspections, to be undertaken at short notice, are programmed for completion by March 2010.
	Five full service inspections of Registered Social Landlords are programmed for 2010/11, as will be a number of focused inspections, the numbers of which are yet to be determined.
	From April 2010 (subject to Parliamentary approval) the TSA will also be responsible for commissioning inspections of local authority landlord services from the Audit Commission.
	A copy of this letter will be placed in Hansard.
	
		
			  Organisation  Inspection title  How good is the service?  What are the prospects for improvement  Month published  Month on site 
			 North Somerset Housing Housing Management Services Fair Promising December 2008 October 2008 
			 Eastend Homes Housing Management Services Good Promising December 2008 October 2008 
			 Lee Housing Association Housing Management Services Poor Promising December 2008 June 2008 
			 Green Vale Homes Housing Management Services Fair Promising January 2009 October 2008 
			 Victory Housing Housing Management Services Fair Promising January 2009 October 2008 
			 Community Gateway Association Housing Management Services Good Promising February 2009 July 2008 
			 Drum Housing Association Housing Management Services Fair Promising April 2009 January 2009 
			 Freebridge Community Housing Housing Management Services Fair Promising April 2009 January 2009 
			 Clapham Park Homes Housing Management Services Fair Uncertain April 2009 January 2009 
			 Adacutus Housing Association Housing Management Service Fair Promising April 2009 February 2009 
			 Manchester and District Housing Association Housing Management Service Good Excellent May 2009 February 2009 
			 NomadE5 Housing Association Housing Management Service Fair Excellent May 2009 February 2009 
			 Tor Homes Housing Management Services Fair Promising June 2009 March 2009 
			 Kingfisher Housing Association Housing Management Services Fair Promising June 2009 March 2009 
			 Leeds Federated Housing Association Housing Management Services Re-inspection Fair Promising July 2009 March 2009 
			 Herefordshire Housing Housing Management Services Re-inspection Good Excellent August 2009 May 2009 
			 Cheshire Peaks and Plains Housing Trust Housing Management Services Good Excellent August 2009 June 2009 
			 Accent Peerless Housing Management Services Fair Promising September 2009 June 2009 
			 Vale of Aylesbury Housing Trust Housing Management Services Fair Promising September 2009 June 2009 
			 Riverside Carlisle Housing Management Services Fair Promising October 2009 June 2009 
			 Merlin Housing Society Housing Management Services Poor Uncertain October 2009 June 2009

Building Regulations: Water

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government for what reason the revisions to Part G of the Building Regulations did not take effect on 1 October 2009; and what recent representations his Department has received from the European Commission on those regulations.

Ian Austin: It was necessary, under the Technical Standards Directive, to submit to the European Commission the guidance in the draft Approved Document that was intended to accompany the changes to Part G of the Building Regulations. On 3 September 2009 we received correspondence from the European Commission. This detailed opinion contained representations on elements of the technical guidance and extended the standstill period, in which it is not possible to bring into force regulations (which covers the guidance in the Approved Documents for the purposes of the Building Regulations), until 2 December 2009. It was necessary, therefore, to delay the coming into force of the legislative changes to Part G until the next common commencement date of 6 April 2010.

Community Infrastructure Levy

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will make it his policy to allow the payment of community infrastructure levy payments in instalments.

Ian Austin: The Government consulted on draft regulations for the implementation of the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) over the summer. Although no provision was included for the payment of CIL in instalments, views were invited on whether regulations should provide for this and if so how. The consultation ended on 23 October 2009 and consultation responses are now being analysed. Further announcements on CIL will be made shortly.

Community Relations: Finance

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to his Department's press release of 14 October 2009, on Connecting communities, whether an assessment was made by his Department of the political results of recent local elections when allocating the funding to chosen wards.

Shahid Malik: Wards were identified by examining a range of hard and soft data around cohesion, deprivation and crime, perceived unfairness in the allocation of resources and feedback from people working locally. The results of local elections were not assessed as part of this process.

Council Housing

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Welwyn Hatfield (Grant Shapps) of 4 November 2009,  Official Report, column 1060W, on council housing, what the size of the local authority housing stock was in each year since 1997.

Ian Austin: Local authority stock for each year since 1997 is given in the following table. The figure for 2008-09 is subject to audit.
	
		
			  Financial year  Total stock 
			 1997-98 3,440,988 
			 1998-99 3,318,035 
			 1999-2000 3,185,869 
			 2000-01 3,016,722 
			 2001-02 2,811,959 
			 2002-03 2,699,147 
			 2003-04 2,453,864 
			 2004-05 2,332,522 
			 2005-06 2,162,330 
			 2006-07 2,073,575 
			 2007-08 1,925,970 
			 2008-09 1,852,992

Council Housing: Debt Collection

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Bromley and Chislehurst (Robert Neill) of 2 November 2009,  Official Report, column 758W, on council tax: debt collection, whether he plans to publish a consultation paper on this matter; whether he plans to change the powers of bailiffs in relation to council tax collection; and what changes to bailiffs' powers and the level of fines there would be under the proposed new system.

Barbara Follett: Further to my answer to the hon. Member for Bromley and Chislehurst (Robert Neill) of November 2 2009,  Official Report, column 758W, no decision has been taken yet about whether to extend the council tax enforcement regime in this way.
	With regard to bailiff powers more generally, the Ministry of Justice has completed an extensive review of these which culminated in the enforcement provisions contained in the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007. The Ministry of Justice will be producing a consultation paper which sets out a package of measures designed to address the concerns that have been raised about the behaviour of bailiffs; the fees they charge and proposals for the regulation of the industry. It will also set out draft regulations on seizure of goods. The Ministry of Justice intends to commence this consultation exercise with a view to implementing the changes in April 2012.

Council Housing: Finance

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what his Department's policy is on the write off of local authority housing debt.

Ian Austin: We set out our plans to reform council housing finance in a consultation paper on 21 July 2009.

Councillors: Codes of Practice

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many allegations of breaches of the Code of Conduct by a councillor were referred to the Standards Board in each of the last five years; and how many such cases resulted in a penalty or other sanction in each such year.

Rosie Winterton: The number of complaints referred to the Standards Board for England in each of the last five years are as follows:
	
		
			   Number 
			 2004-2005 3,861 
			 2005-2006 3,836 
			 2006-2007 3,549 
			 2007-2008 3,547 
			 2008-2009 177 
		
	
	The figure for 2008-09 reflects the introduction of the new locally based conduct regime from May 2008 in which, as recommended by the Commission for Standards in Public Life, all but the most serious allegations of misconduct are handled by individual council's standards committees.
	The Standards Board has no sanctioning power, but where, after investigation, it considers a complaint referred to it might warrant some sanction, it reports the matter to either the council's standards committee or the Adjudication Panel for England, who then determine whether there has been a breach of the code and if so what sanction to apply.
	The number of cases referred to councils standards committees or the Adjudication Panel for England were:
	
		
			   Number 
			 2004-2005 189 
			 2005-2006 160 
			 2006-2007 21 
			 2007-2008 23 
			 2008-2009 18

Departmental Information Officers

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many  (a) press officers and  (b) communications staff were employed by his Department (i) in each of the last five years and (ii) on the latest date for which figures are available; and what the cost of employing these staff was in each such year.

Barbara Follett: To find the numbers of communications staff employed by the Department for Communities and Local Government in 2008-09, I refer the hon. Member to its annual report. The cost of employing these was £3,659,986.
	For costs in previous years, I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Falmouth and Camborne (Julia Goldsworthy) on 17 July 2008,  Official Report, column 578W. We do not hold the information on numbers in previous years in the format requested, and this could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Public Expenditure

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what his Department's original expenditure provision was for 2009-10; what the most recently updated provision is; and how much has been spent under  (a) Request for Resources 1 and  (b) Request for Resources 2.

Barbara Follett: The Department's original, and revised, expenditure provision for 2009-10 are set out in the Main Estimates (published 16 June 2009-HC514) and the Winter Supplementary Estimates (published 24 November 2009-HC24) respectively.
	November is the most recent month for which complete figures for 2009-10 expenditure are available. 2009-10 expenditure to the end of November under  (a) Request for Resources 1 was £10,513.5 million and  (b) Request for Resources 2 was £18,142.0 million. These figures are subject to audit.

Departmental Responsibilities

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the cost of the proposed new innovation commissioning unit in his Department; and what its role will be in relation to that of regional improvement and efficiency partnerships.

Rosie Winterton: The Secretary of State's priorities on innovation are being delivered flexibly from within existing administrative resources and costs are not recorded separately. This work engages with, but does not duplicate, the work of regional improvement and efficiency partnerships.

Fire Services

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps his Department is taking to increase the number of retained firefighters.

Shahid Malik: Each fire and rescue authority is responsible for assessing, through its Integrated Risk Management Planning process, the number of firefighters on both wholetime and retained duty systems required to provide an effective fire and rescue service in its area. The Government are aware that, due to the nature of the retained duty system (RDS), which requires staff to live or work in close proximity to the fire station, a number of fire and rescue authorities find it difficult to recruit sufficient numbers of RDS staff.
	Communities and Local Government has resourced a number of initiatives to support fire and rescue authorities in their efforts to recruit RDS staff. Most recent among these initiatives has been the development, following national research, of a suite of information literature, in the form of a toolkit, for fire and rescue services to use in establishing and building links with local businesses to encourage them to support their staff in becoming RDS firefighters. The Employers' Information Toolkit is designed to be flexible so that it can be tailored specifically to suit local need. To complement the Toolkit, and as a further support to local communication strategies directed at the business community, CLG has also produced a radio advertisement which fire and rescue services can use locally.

Fire Services

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many full-time firefighters were employed by each fire and rescue authority on 31 March  (a) 1998,  (b) 2001,  (c) 2005 and  (d) 2008.

Shahid Malik: The number of full-time fire-fighters employed in fire and rescue services by each fire and rescue authority on 31 March  (a) 1998,  (b) 2001,  (c) 2005 and  (d) 2008 are shown in the following table.
	Please note that data for 1998 were only available as at 1 January.
	
		
			  Fire and rescue service fire-fighters in post (full-time equivalent and in 24-hour units of cover) by authority at 31 March 1998, 2001, 2005 and 2008 
			   1998( 1)  2001  2005  2008 
			   Whole - time( 2)  Retained( 3)  Whole - time( 2)  Retained( 3)  Whole - time( 2)  Retained( 3)  Whole - time( 2)  Retained( 3) 
			  England 31,906 12,964 31,623 10,633 31,097 10,785 30,581 11,747 
			  
			 Avon 656 211 667 160 669 186 660 165 
			 Bedfordshire and Luton 308 136 330 115 323 122 330 136 
			 Buckinghamshire 300 201 292 152 349 137 367 194 
			 Cambridgeshire 264 341 276 295 273 323 277 297 
			 Cheshire 621 194 631 146 602 146 586 172 
			 Cleveland 604 86 601 62 563 72 542 72 
			 Cornwall 183 401 185 407 201 403 190 403 
			 County Durham and 405 158 405 119 385 144 387 147 
			 Cumbria 283 432 274 370 274 426 252 452 
			 Derbyshire 481 378 465 231 475 206 444 204 
			 Devon 551 722 570 648 562 763 - - 
			 Devon and Somerset(4) - - - - - - 721 1,131 
			 Dorset 291 361 300 288 302 313 300 312 
			 East Sussex 432 235 425 201 434 190 428 206 
			 Essex 903 452 936 373 925 290 943 438 
			 Gloucestershire 225 277 232 257 230 278 234 252 
			 Greater Manchester 2,150 48 2,090 26 2,028 22 1,943 16 
			 Hampshire 764 689 784 546 790 576 825 614 
			 Hereford and Worcester 355 347 355 294 319 285 342 315 
			 Hertfordshire 572 256 565 212 560 208 574 203 
			 Humberside 709 293 725 276 710 289 726 282 
			 Isle of Wight 60 159 61 152 63 152 59 148 
			 Isles of Scilly 7 33 9 34 10 40 11 39 
			 Kent 947 752 944 494 893 487 900 667 
			 Lancashire 987 440 1,010 285 957 300 896 317 
			 Leicestershire 490 233 498 144 474 n/a 481 147 
			 Lincolnshire 187 401 189 413 195 420 230 433 
			 London 5,909 0 5,693 0 5,924 0 5,910 0 
			 Merseyside 1,481 0 1,369 0 1,249 n/a 1,044 185 
			 Norfolk 277 447 310 424 281 469 302 497 
			 North Yorkshire 354 375 352 331 358 329 320 334 
			 Northamptonshire 280 223 296 182 298 211 276 196 
			 Northumberland 202 176 206 152 193 164 190 160 
			 Nottinghamshire 568 323 581 202 542 189 576 206 
			 Oxfordshire 215 278 230 237 237 256 249 287 
			 Royal Berkshire 423 165 406 122 422 n/a 437 100 
			 Shropshire 199 288 200 249 208 272 214 292 
			 Somerset 171 380 179 351 184 342 - - 
			 South Yorkshire 916 72 920 39 878 32 834 60 
			 Staffordshire 487 352 473 304 447 337 446 313 
			 Suffolk 262 431 247 352 256 362 259 396 
			 Surrey 726 140 713 103 673 105 650 76 
			 Tyne and Wear 1,023 21 1,010 18 945 18 912 14 
			 Warwickshire 310 182 286 149 276 145 275 133 
			 West Midlands 2,044 13 2,031 8 1,944 11 1,937 7 
			 West Sussex 392 339 397 272 394 292 376 282 
			 West Yorkshire 1,723 174 1,683 166 1,602 159 1,501 149 
			 Wiltshire 209 349 222 272 220 314 225 298 
			 (1) Strength figures as at 1 January 1998. (2) Including all whole-time shift systems in full-time equivalents. (3) In 24 hour units of cover. (4) With effect from 1 April 2007, Devon fire and rescue service and Somerset fire and rescue service merged to become Devon and Somerset fire and rescue service.

Fire Services

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of  (a) primary crewing and  (b) dual or mixed crewing for aerial platform fire-fighting appliances.

Shahid Malik: The Department has not undertaken any assessment of the effectiveness of primary crewing or duel or mixed crewing for aerial platform fire-fighting appliances. The Audit Commission assesses fire and rescue authorities' use of resources as part of their comprehensive area assessment. It is for fire and rescue authorities to decide the location and crewing arrangements for their firefighting resources. It is also their responsibility to undertake any necessary assessments of their crewing arrangements, based on their integrated risk management plan (IRMP) which reflects local need and sets out plans to tackle both existing and potential risks to communities. The IRMP enables the authority to tailor cover for fire and other incidents to local circumstances, evaluating where risk is greatest and allocating resources accordingly. Fire and rescue authorities are required to undertake consultation on their IRMP with their communities and other interested parties such as adjacent fire and rescue authorities prior to its implementation.

Fire Services

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps his Department is taking to improve training for firefighters for dealing with  (a) flooding incidents,  (b) urban search and rescue calls,  (c) water rescues and  (d) terrorist incidents.

Shahid Malik: The Department's new dimensions project has provided the fire and rescue service (FRS) with enhanced capabilities for high volume pumping, urban search and rescue, and mass decontamination of the public, to respond to incidents on the largest scale, both terrorist-related and natural events such as flooding. The sector-led National Resilience Authority, funded by the Department, provides operational assurance that the capabilities remain fit for purpose for the long term, and this includes a strong focus on training, including development and central purchasing of training on behalf of the FRS. The Department also directly funds fire and rescue authorities (£4.9 million in 2009-10) in recognition of local training costs for new dimensions.
	Ultimately, it is for each authority to ensure that its personnel are trained for the roles they carry out. Supporting this, the Department, working with the sector, has produced an FRS operational assessment toolkit which covers training, including the requirement for civil resilience training. A sector qualifications strategy under development by Skills 4 Justice will develop a fire and rescue water safety qualification.

Flood Control

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he expects the final guidance on good practice will be published in accordance with recommendation 41 of the Pitt Report.

Tessa Jowell: I have been asked to reply.
	In line with our commitment in the Government's response to Sir Michael Pitt's Review, in August 2009 we published final guidance on good practice in relation to the management and co-ordination of local operations, as part of revised Emergency Response and Recovery Guidance (section 4.1).

Floods: Thames Gateway

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent assessment his Department has made of  (a) the level of flood risk in the Thames Gateway and  (b) the effects on the availability of insurance policies for new build dwellings in that area of flood risk.

Shahid Malik: The Environment Agency has recently finished consultation on its Thames Estuary 2100 (TE2100) Plan, which assesses increasing tidal flood risk in the Thames estuary floodplain over the century, and recommends actions to manage the increasing risk over that time. The Environment Agency findings show that the standard of protection provided by the tidal defences, is higher than previously anticipated. Under current climate change guidance the main estuary defences, maintained and renewed when necessary, will continue to protect estuary communities against tidal surges, that on average may only occur once in a 1,000 years, up to around 2070. The final TE2100 plan, which will direct future tidal flood risk management in the estuary, will be submitted to the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in the spring.
	All local planning authorities have to undertake their own strategic flood risk assessment to inform their development planning process as detailed in Planning Policy Statement 25 (PPS25). PPS25 also requires that planning applications for new developments located within flood risk areas are supported by a flood risk assessment, to assess the risk of flooding from all sources, and demonstrate how the development can manage those risks so it is safe.
	The Government's position on flood risk and the effect on the availability of insurance is set out in a joint Government and Association of British Insurers (ABI) statement published in July 2008. ABI have also said that their members will insure buildings that comply with PPS25.

Home Information Packs

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer of 15 June 2009,  Official Report, column 32W, on Departmental building, whether his Department has issued guidance on the maximum duration of validity of a local authority search within a home information pack before which it is deemed to be out of date; and what responsibilities  (a) estate agents and  (b) sellers have to update the searches in the case of material changes.

Ian Austin: There is no requirement for sellers to renew the searches in a Home Information Pack as long as the property remains on the market.

Housing and Planning Delivery Grant

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much funding has been allocated to the  (a) Housing and Planning Delivery Grant and  (b) Local Authority Business Growth Incentive Scheme for (i) 2010-11 and (ii) 2011-12.

Barbara Follett: In the Housing and Planning Delivery Grant (HPDG) consultation of 2009 we announced that, given the changed economic circumstances, we had taken the opportunity to review the position and make some hard choices about our priorities. In conclusion, we have scaled back the increase in HPDG by £25 million in year two (2009-10) and £50 million in year three (2010-11) to reflect the decline in housing completions and the lower number of plans being submitted. The baseline of HPDG is still increasing significantly so the effect of this change is that HPDG funding will increase from £100 million in year one (2008-09) to £200 million in year three (2010-11). We will continue to keep these issues under review.
	No decision has been taken yet about Local Authority Business Growth Incentive (LABGI) scheme allocations for 2010-11.
	Budgets for 2011-12 will be considered as part of the next spending review.

Housing Revenue Accounts

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent estimate he has made of the likely effect of the proposals in the 2010-11 draft Housing Revenue Account (HRA) Subsidy Determination published on 10 December 2009 on the total net outturn of HRA subsidy for 2010-11.

John Healey: Any HRA subsidy forecast for a future year can change very significantly due to interest rate and stock movement changes, and other information submitted by local authorities through HRA subsidy returns. We will not have data from local authorities to inform estimates of any subsidy surplus for 2010-11 until after the first subsidy claim forms are received at the end of March 2010.

Islam4UK

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for the Home Department on the effects on community cohesion of the activities of Islam4UK.

Shahid Malik: In my role as the Minister for preventing extremism, I have met with the Home Secretary and other Home Office Ministers to discuss Islam4UK.
	The Prime Minister and I have publicly commented Islam4UK's recent announcements appear intended to provoke anger and division between communities. They have not succeeded. Last week we saw local Wootton Bassett residents and the Wiltshire Islamic Cultural Centre united in opposition to Islam4UK's irresponsible and irrational actions.

Land Use

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether his Department has undertaken research into the practice of land banking by  (a) developers and  (b) supermarkets in the last five years.

Ian Austin: The Department for Communities and Local Government has not undertaken research into the practice of land banking by developers or supermarkets in the last five years.

Landlords: Registration

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what timetable he has set for the introduction of a national register of landlords; and whether legislation will be required to establish such a register.

Ian Austin: Introduction of a national register for landlords would require primary legislation. At present, there is no timetable established for such legislation.

Leasehold: Service Charges

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance his Department has issued to  (a) local authorities and  (b) arm's-length management organisations on the level of service charges levied by them on their leaseholders.

Ian Austin: In February 1997, the Department issued guidance to social landlords on how to comply with two sets of directions issued at that time.
	The Social Landlords Discretionary Reduction of Service Charges (England) Directions 1997 give social landlords discretion to reduce or waive leaseholders' bills in specified circumstances.
	The Social Landlords Mandatory Reduction of Service Charges (England) Directions 1997 require them to reduce bills in certain cases when special Government assistance is applied for from specified programmes.
	The Department's 2006-07 Housing Revenue Account (HRA) Manual also provides guidance to local authorities on appropriate accounting treatment of mixed leaseholder and tenanted blocks, including general advice on how to account for income and expenditure on works to common parts.
	The above guidance does not distinguish between local authorities and their arm's-length management Organisations.

Local Government Finance

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which areas have adopted participatory budgeting; what funding his Department has provided to support the use of that practice in each such area.

Barbara Follett: The Participatory Budgeting Unit (PBU) collates information on our behalf on bodies that have adopted it. Initiatives are being led by a variety of types of organisation including councils (all types), police authorities, primary care trusts and the third sector.
	According to the information available to the PBU, the following bodies have implemented participatory budgeting initiatives:
	 North West
	Salford City Council
	St Helens Metropolitan Borough Council
	Lancaster City Council
	Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council
	Sefton Council
	Manchester City Council
	Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council
	Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council
	Liverpool City Council
	Greater Manchester Police-Tameside, Stockport, Bolton and Rochdale
	Lancashire Police-Wyre and Blackburn
	Merseyside Police-Liverpool
	Cheshire East Council
	Alston Moor Parish Council
	Wigan Community Network (Third Sector)
	 North East
	Newcastle upon Tyne City Council
	Sunderland City Council
	Wansbeck District Council
	Gateshead Metropolitan Borough Council
	Hartlepool Borough Council
	Cleveland Police-Hartlepool
	West Middlesbrough Neighbourhood Trust (New Deal for Communities-Third Sector)
	Coast and Country Housing (Redcar)
	Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council
	Northumbria Police-Sunderland, Gateshead, South Tyneside and Newcastle
	 Yorkshire and the Humber
	Bradford Local Strategic Partnership
	York City Council
	Sheffield City Council
	Leeds City Council
	Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council
	Hull-Preston Road Neighbourhood Development Company (New Deal for Communities-Third Sector)
	North Lincolnshire Council
	Scarborough Borough Council
	South Yorkshire Police-Rotherham, Barnsley and Sheffield
	West Yorkshire Police-Wakefield
	 West Midlands
	Birmingham City Council
	Staffordshire County Council
	Walsall-The new horizons community enterprise (New Deal for Communities-Third Sector)
	West Bromwich-Greets Green Partnership (New Deal for Communities-Third Sector)
	Hampton Bishop Parish Council
	Coventry City Council
	West Midland Police-Birmingham
	Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council
	 East Midlands
	Leicestershire County Council
	Manton Community Alliance (Third Sector delivering neighbourhood management pathfinder)
	Mansfield District Council
	Nottingham Neighbourhood Development Company (New Deal for Communities-Third Sector)
	Bassetlaw District Council
	Leicester City Council
	Derbyshire Police-Bolsover
	Nottinghamshire Police-Mansfield and Nottingham
	 East
	Norfolk County Council
	Norfolk Police-Broadland
	Huntingdonshire District Council
	 London
	Lewisham London Borough Council
	Haringey London Borough Council
	Lambeth London Borough Council
	Tower Hamlets Local Strategic Partnership
	Metropolitan Police-Islington and Barking and Dagenham
	 South East
	Isle of Wight Council
	Thanet District Council
	Southampton City Council
	Kent County Council
	Thames Valley Police-Slough
	Kent Police-Thanet
	 South West
	Wiltshire Council
	East Devon District Council
	Dulverton Town Council
	Cornwall Council
	Plymouth-Devonport Regeneration Community Partnership (New Deal for Communities-Third Sector)
	Again according to the PBU, the following bodies intend to implement participatory budgeting initiatives, but have not yet done so:
	 North West
	Carlisle City Council
	Trafford Metropolitan Borough Council
	Wigan Metropolitan Borough Council
	Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council
	 Yorkshire and the Humber
	Kirklees Council
	Hull Primary Care Trust
	 East Midlands
	Daventry District Council
	 East
	Luton Borough Council
	Hertfordshire County Council
	 South East
	Buckinghamshire County Council
	Portsmouth City Council
	 South West
	Bristol City Council
	CLG provides grant funding to the PBU who provide advice and support to areas implementing participatory budgeting. We provided £260,000 in grant funding to the PBU in 2008-09 and we have allocated £270,000 in grant funding for 2009-10.

Local Government Services: EU Law

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent assessment he has made of the effects on local authorities of the implementation of the EU Services Directive.

Rosie Winterton: We have approached the implementation of the EU Services Directive in accordance with our commitment to ensure that all new burdens falling on local authorities, including those arising as a result of the implementation of EU Directives, are fully considered and properly funded so that there is no upward pressure on council tax bills.

Local Government Services: Fees and Charges

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps his Department has taken in response to the review of the Audit Commission of the use of fees and charges by local authorities.

Barbara Follett: In the last decade, the Audit Commission have issued two national reports on local authority fees and charges. The first, published in 1999, was entitled The Price is Right. It identified a number of issues for authorities to consider when setting fees, and also found that the legal framework for council charges was complex and confusing and the framework should be reviewed to provide the best authorities with the freedom to improve and innovate. The Government took action to provide greater flexibility for local decisions in this area by introducing a power for councils to charge for discretionary services. This power, which was implemented by section 93 of the Local Government Act 2003, is limited to cost recovery and the authority may only charge a person for providing a service if he or she has agreed to its provision.
	The Commission's second report, entitled Positively Charged was published in 2008 and it also made a number of recommendations for local authorities to consider and found that the rationale for centrally imposed restrictions on the level of fees was not always clear. However, the Government consider the level of centrally set fees carefully to try to ensure that the appropriate balance between the policy objectives of the service covered by the fee, and its level is struck.
	The Government believe that councils should avoid imposing double taxation on citizens by adopting proposals that deliver only a basic level of service, and impose charges for anything above this. We also believe that councils must not see raising income-whether through charges or taxation-as an alternative to cutting out waste and driving down expenditure. Anyone who pays a tax or a charge for a local service has the right to expect that the authority in question will strive to keep costs down and improve efficiency.

Social Services: Staffordshire

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what assessments of Staffordshire County Council's social services department have been undertaken since 2007;
	(2)  what assessments of Staffordshire County Council's social services department have been made since 2008.

Barbara Follett: The Department for Communities and Local Government does not hold records of the inspections and assessments taking place in individual councils. However, inspectorates have advised that:
	The Care Quality Commission (CQC), which was established in April 2009, and one of its predecessors, the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI), has carried out the following assessments of Staffordshire county council since 2007:
	reviews of Staffordshire county council's fostering services and of its adoption service, both in January 2007;
	published its annual performance assessment of Staffordshire county council for 2007-08 in October 2008;
	carried out an inspection of Staffordshire county council in March-April 2009 to find out how well the council was safeguarding vulnerable adults. The results were published as a CQC review of Independence, Wellbeing and Choice' in June 2009;
	published its 2008-09 annual performance assessment of the council in December 2009, which includes details of Staffordshire's adult social care services.
	All of CQC's documents are available on its website:
	http://www.cqc.org.uk/publications.cfm
	Also undertaken were:
	Audit Commission inspection of the Supporting People framework in 2008;
	Ofsted reported on Staffordshire's fostering services in May 2008;
	Ofsted/CQC reported on services for safeguarding and looked after children in August 2009. (Ofsted assumed responsibility for assessing and inspecting children's service including children's social care services in April 2007);
	Ofsted published annual ratings of Staffordshire children's services in November 2007, December 2008 and December 2009.
	Information on Ofsted's assessments and inspections in Staffordshire is available on its website:
	http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/oxcare_providers/la_view/(leaid)/860
	CQC and Ofsted contributed to the comprehensive area assessment (CAA) introduced from April 2009. The multi-inspectorate CAA report on Staffordshire in December 2009 included CQC's performance assessment and Ofsted's annual rating. CAA Reports are available on the Oneplace website:
	http://oneplace.direct.gov.uk/Pages/default.aspx

Mortgages: Rented Housing

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many buy-to-let mortgages were in arrears in each year since 1997.

Ian Austin: The Department does not collect information on mortgage possessions and arrears. Information is published separately by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) and the Financial Services Authority (FSA).

Multiple Occupation: Licensing

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 6 January 2010,  Official Report, column 381W, on multiple occupation: licensing, for what reason the report has not yet been published; and whether he expects it to be published before May 2010.

Ian Austin: The Building Research Establishment Report is ready for publication. Publication was originally delayed due to Purdah prior to the local authority elections last year, and the ministerial changes that followed. We are currently awaiting a suitable publication date prior to May 2010.

Non-Domestic Rates: Closed Circuit Television

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what methodology the Valuation Office Agency uses to value closed circuit television for the purpose of calculating business rates.

Barbara Follett: To the extent a closed circuit television system is rateable, separately or as part of a larger rateable hereditament, valuation officers have used a cost based methodology to value them.

Ordnance Survey: Income

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much income Ordnance Survey received from the sale of  (a) licences and  (b) maps in each of the last three years.

Ian Austin: For the last three years for which complete information is available the income received by Ordnance Survey in the categories indicated, was:
	
		
			  £ million 
			   Revenue from licences  Revenue from paper maps 
			 2006-07 98.6 9.1 
			 2007-08 101.4 9.6 
			 2008-09 102.3 8.9

Planning Obligations

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance his Department has issued to local authorities on whether funding under section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 may be spent on religious buildings.

Ian Austin: The Government's policy on the use of Planning Obligations is set out in Circular 05/05 and local authorities must have reason for departing from it. Communities and Local Government has also published practice guidance on Planning Obligations.
	Both of these documents are available on the Department's website.

Private Rented Housing

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what activity his Department has undertaken as part of the task and finish groups referred to in the Government response to the Rugg review of the private rented sector.

Ian Austin: Four task and finish groups were established as part of the consultation process for the Government's response to the Rugg review of private rented sector housing. Three of these groups (considering proposals for a national register, regulation of letting and managing agents and regulation of managing agents for leasehold properties) each met twice during the consultation period. A further group, considering local letting agencies, has met four times to date and continues to do so.

Private Rented Housing

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what recent meetings  (a) officials and  (b) Ministers in his Department have had with organisations which aim to remove the barriers to the private rented housing sector for low income households on housing waiting lists;
	(2)  when he plans to publish proposals for local lettings agencies, as referred to in the Government response to the Rugg review of the private rented sector.

Ian Austin: As part of the consultation process on the Government's response to the Rugg review of private rented sector housing, a group was set up with key stakeholders to explore how local authorities could work more effectively with the private rented sector to house low-income individuals and households, particularly through a Local Lettings Agency (LLA) approach.
	This group has met four times to date-in July, September (twice) and December 2009-and plans to meet again shortly. My officials will be sharing the outcome of the group's work on LLAs with the staff of local authorities, voluntary organisations and industry bodies-including case studies on LAs who have introduced an LLA-during the spring.
	In addition, Ministers and officials meet from time to time on this and other PRS issues with local authorities, senior staff from organisations including Crisis and Shelter and industry bodies such as the National Landlords Association (NLA) and the National Approved Lettings Scheme (NALS).

Private Rented Housing

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when his Department plans to publish its response to the consultation on its proposals for implementation of the recommendations of the Rugg review of the private rented sector.

Ian Austin: We have been carefully considering the over 250 responses we received to our consultation on proposals in response to the Rugg review of the private rented sector. A summary of those responses will be published shortly.

Regional Government: South West

Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how the South West Councils is funded.

Barbara Follett: The South West Secretariat which supports the SW Councils receives funding from a number of sources. Communities and Local Government (CLG) funds the Strategic Leader Board's planning, transport and housing functions; grant funding is also received from CLG to support the delivery of improvement and efficiency across the public sector. The Home Office provides funding for work on migration and asylum. In addition local authorities, including town and parish councils subscribe to the organisation.
	There is also an element of not for profit, self generated funding through provision of specialist employment consultancy and learning and development events.

Regional Government: South West

Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people are employed at South West Councils.

Barbara Follett: From 1 January 2010 South West Councils will employ 66.5 full-time equivalent posts held by 71 staff. This is a reduction from 79 full-time equivalent posts in April 2009.

Regional Government: South West

Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much funding South West Councils receives per annum.

Barbara Follett: For financial year 2009-10 South West Councils received the following funding from Communities and Local Government: £2,070,148 (regional funding for the Strategic Leaders Board) and £525,000 to fund the core costs of the South-West Regional Efficiency and Improvement Programme (REIP). In addition to this South West Councils received £110,000 direct from the Home Office to support regional work on migration and asylum. Local government subscriptions to South West Councils amounted to £572,700 and Associate Members of South West Employers provided £31,000. It is anticipated that South West Employers will generate £800,000 through their training and consultancy service.

Royal Society of Arts

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will place in the Library a copy of the full text of his speech to the Royal Society of Arts of 21 October 2009.

Barbara Follett: A copy of my right hon. Friend's speech as held on the Department's website has been placed in the Library.

Sheltered Housing

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent guidance his Department has issued to local authorities on the provision of support for sheltered housing wardens.

Ian Austin: The Department for Communities and Local Government has not issued any guidance on the provision of support for sheltered housing wardens. The Supporting People programme grant, which is paid to top tier local authorities to enable them to provide housing related support services, which may include the provision of wardens in sheltered housing schemes, is managed and delivered at the local level. Decisions about the provision of services are a matter for local authorities based on local needs and priorities.

Shops: Empty Property

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Putney of 13 October 2009,  Official Report, column 771W, on empty shops funding grant, if he will place in the Library a copy of the methodology used to allocate the funding to the local authorities listed.

Barbara Follett: As the Department for Communities and Local Government announced on August 13 and December 4 2009, it is providing £5.6 million to 107 local authorities to support initiatives designed to make use of vacant shops to give a boost to high streets and town centres adversely affected by the recession. We have targeted this funding at councils with relatively high levels of deprivation and each is receiving just over £52,000.
	The allocations announced in August 2009 were based on local authorities in the top third of the Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) ranked in order of shop vacancy rates; the top 57 councils each received just over £52,000. The allocations announced in December 2009 were based on local authorities in the top half of the IMD ranked in order of shop vacancy rates, but excluded those which had received funding in August; a further 50 councils also received just over £52,000 each.
	A copy of the CLG report The English Indices of Deprivation 2007 is available in the Library of the House. Shop vacancy data are part of a set of statistics collected by Experian on a frequent basis as part of their business. We entered into a commercial arrangement with Experian to use the data set for allocating this funding but do not have rights to publish it.

Sleeping Rough

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what qualifying criteria are required in order to receive a Supporting People grant under the rough sleeper strand; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Austin: Supporting People funding is not allocated on a client group basis. The Supporting People programme is administered at the local level by the relevant administering authority and CLG do not set a qualifying criteria for providers to receive a grant. It is for the authority to decide which services to fund, informed by the local needs and priorities. The majority of individuals who are eligible for Supporting People funding tend to use a service, rather than receive a cash grant.

Social Rented Housing: Regulation

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the likely level of fees which will be levied on registered social landlords to cover the cost of regulation by the Tenant Services Authority.

Ian Austin: No decision has been taken to levy fees on social landlords to cover the cost of regulation. Before any decision is taken, the Tenant Services Authority will consult on the principle and approach to introducing fees.

Thames Gateway London Partnership

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will place in the Library copies of the written representations made to his Department by the Thames Gateway London Partnership in the last 12 months.

Barbara Follett: The information requested is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

HEALTH

NHS: Charitable Funding

Stephen Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his latest estimate is of the amount of money donated to NHS institutions through charitable giving.

Phil Hope: In 2008-09, national health service trusts and primary care trusts in England received contributions from all charitable sources totalling £62 million in expenditure and £65 million in assets. The Department does not collect this information for NHS Foundation Trusts who report directly to Monitor.

A and E: Nottinghamshire

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment has been made of the effectiveness of accident and emergency provision in Nottinghamshire hospitals.

Ann Keen: Primary care trusts commission national health service hospital trusts to provide emergency care services according to local needs and monitor their performance.

NHS Ambulance Trusts

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions he has had with NHS ambulance trust professionals regarding measuring patient outcomes.

Mike O'Brien: I refer the hon. Member to the oral answer I gave to him earlier today.

Cancer Treatment

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment has been made of the comparative cost and efficacy of herceptin and lapatenib for cancer patients.

Ann Keen: The Department has made no such assessment. It is the role of the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency to assess the efficacy of drugs and the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence to appraise the clinical and cost effectiveness of new drugs and treatments.

NHS Hospitals: Private Facilities

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many private rooms there are in NHS hospitals built since 2001; and if he will make a statement.

Mike O'Brien: The Department collects data on single rooms in new national health service hospitals with a capital value over £25 million. Private pay bedroom data are not collected. Since 2001, all schemes have met the Department's guidance that the proportion of standard in-patient single rooms in new hospitals should aim to be 50 per cent. but not fall below 20 per cent. and must be higher than the facilities they are replacing.

Smoking Cessation

Tom Levitt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to encourage people to stop smoking.

Gillian Merron: This Government have given active encouragement to people to stop smoking through setting up NHS Stop Smoking Services, smoke-free legislation, banning tobacco advertising, raising the age of sale and effective information campaigns.
	A new tobacco control strategy will soon be published to help further reduce the damage caused by smoking.

NHS Staff: Protection

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he plans to take to protect NHS staff from abusive and violent behaviour in hospitals; and if he will make a statement.

Ann Keen: Each national health service body has a duty to address risks to staff and ensure their safety.
	The Department and the NHS Security Management Service will work with stakeholders, including the Social Partnership Forum, to promote the safety of staff.
	A new offence of causing nuisance or disturbance on hospital premises and a power to remove someone suspected of committing this offence have recently been introduced.

Health Visitors: Hertfordshire

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many health visitors the NHS employed in Hertfordshire  (a) in 2005 and  (b) on the latest date for which figures are available.

Ann Keen: In the last decade, child health services have developed based on research and the healthy child programme. In all the trusts serving the Hertfordshire region, 340 health visitors were employed in 2005. Following the change and the extensive child health programmes, we now deliver child health by a range of practitioners. The latest figures show that at 30 September 2008, there were 272 health visitors in trusts that serve the Hertfordshire area.

Dentistry: Children

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of children of primary school age were treated by an NHS dentist in  (a) England,  (b) Northamptonshire and  (c) Kettering constituency in the last 12 months.

Ann Keen: We do not collect statistics relating solely to children of primary school age. In England, 7,658,923 children (69.6 per cent. of all children) received care or treatment from a national health service dentist in the 24 months ending September 2009. In Northamptonshire primary care trust, 100,901 children were seen (65.3 per cent. of all children resident in the PCT).

PCT Funding

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects those primary care trusts classified as under-target to meet the target funding level determined by the formula announced in December 2008.

Mike O'Brien: The national health service will always be a priority for increasing investment, and we remain committed to moving primary care trusts (PCTs) towards their target allocations as quickly as possible. Future progress towards target will depend on a number of factors including population changes, cost pressures and the overall resources available to the NHS.
	There has been a greater recognition of the level of need in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly PCT and as a result, this PCT will ultimately get more money than it would have done previously.

Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

Sally Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many alcohol-related accident and emergency incidents resulting in hospital admissions there were in each  (a) primary care trust and  (b) strategic health authority area in each of the last three years.

Gillian Merron: The number of alcohol-related accident and emergency incidents resulting in hospital admissions in each primary care trust (PCT) and regional health area in each of the last three years is presented as follows:
	
		
			  Number of admissions via accident and emergency (A and E) of patients with an alcohol-related condition by PCT of residence 
			  PCT name  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			 Ashton, Leigh and Wigan PCT 4,133 4,083 4,623 
			 Barking and Dagenham PCT 1,870 1,899 1,933 
			 Barnet PCT 2,082 1,641 2,593 
			 Barnsley PCT 2,037 2,164 2,480 
			 Bassetlaw PCT 915 946 958 
			 Bath and North East Somerset PCT 1,545 1,546 1,694 
			 Bedfordshire PCT 2,879 3,263 3,389 
			 Berkshire East PCT 2,364 2,434 2,825 
			 Berkshire West PCT 1,758 1,977 2,047 
			 Bexley Care Trust 1,148 1,308 1,332 
			 Birmingham East and North PCT 3,847 4,223 4,659 
			 Blackburn with Darwen PCT 1,648 1,656 1,715 
			 Blackpool PCT 1,679 1,619 1,931 
			 Bolton PCT 2,979 3,068 2,955 
			 Bournemouth and Poole PCT 2,305 2,360 2,622 
			 Bradford and Airedale PCT 3,925 4,398 5,438 
			 Brent Teaching PCT 2,201 2,345 2,518 
			 Brighton and Hove City PCT 2,733 3,188 3,698 
			 Bristol PCT 4,067 3,844 4,716 
			 Bromley PCT 2,448 2,468 2,708 
			 Buckinghamshire PCT 2,794 2,547 2,633 
			 Bury PCT 1,762 1,981 2,202 
			 Calderdale PCT 1,763 1,989 1,911 
			 Cambridgeshire PCT 4,585 4,861 5,260 
			 Camden PCT 2,114 2,148 2,039 
			 Central and Eastern Cheshire PCT 4,449 4,985 5,318 
			 Central Lancashire PCT 4,060 4,492 4,762 
			 City and Hackney Teaching PCT 2,266 2,210 2,015 
			 Cornwall and Isles of Scilly PCT 3,063 3,466 3,950 
			 County Durham PCT 3,967 4,700 5,494 
			 Coventry Teaching PCT 2,258 2,254 3,581 
			 Croydon PCT 2,914 2,986 3,353 
			 Cumbria PCT 3,771 4,106 4,222 
			 Darlington PCT 988 1,049 1,122 
			 Derby City PCT 2,098 2,251 2,989 
			 Derbyshire County PCT 5,118 5,679 6,272 
			 Devon PCT 4,437 4,917 5,353 
			 Doncaster PCT 2,482 2,558 2,643 
			 Dorset PCT 2,580 2,582 2,900 
			 Dudley PCT 2,366 2,728 2,766 
			 Ealing PCT 2,875 3,626 4,020 
			 East and North Hertfordshire PCT 2,593 2,869 3,006 
			 East Lancashire PCT 3,546 3,851 4,105 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire PCT 2,010 2,181 2,261 
			 East Sussex Downs and Weald PCT 2,631 2,876 3,177 
			 Eastern and Coastal Kent PCT 5,999 7,046 7,798 
			 Enfield PCT 2,274 1,582 2,401 
			 Gateshead PCT 2,527 2,525 2,910 
			 Gloucestershire PCT 3,208 3,182 3,367 
			 Great Yarmouth and Waveney PCT 1,468 1,513 1,718 
			 Greenwich Teaching PCT 1,711 1,916 1,679 
			 Halton and St. Helens PCT 4,039 4,544 5,105 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham PCT 1,725 2,085 2,117 
			 Hampshire PCT 6,893 7,822 9,065 
			 Haringey Teaching PCT 1,813 1,851 2,118 
			 Harrow PCT 1,381 1,511 1,635 
			 Hartlepool PCT 846 918 1,030 
			 Hastings and Rother PCT 1,848 1,830 1,985 
			 Havering PCT 2,134 2,231 2,271 
			 Heart of Birmingham Teaching PCT 3,461 3,677 3,898 
			 Herefordshire PCT 1,153 1,128 1,274 
			 Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale PCT 2,211 2,466 2,930 
			 Hillingdon PCT 2,424 2,575 2,695 
			 Hounslow PCT 1,382 2,319 2,678 
			 Hull PCT 2,991 2,899 2,973 
			 Isle of Wight Healthcare PCT 722 663 865 
			 Islington PCT 1,922 2,084 2,093 
			 Kensington and Chelsea PCT 1,176 1,253 1,326 
			 Kingston PCT 1,177 1,292 1,000 
			 Kirklees PCT 2,491 2,958 3,343 
			 Knowsley PCT 2,352 2,655 2,767 
			 Lambeth PCT 2,881 2,566 2,354 
			 Leeds PCT 7,072 7,485 9,047 
			 Leicester City PCT 3,940 3,949 3,957 
			 Leicestershire County and Rutland PCT 4,341 4,591 5,029 
			 Lewisham PCT 2,103 2,480 2,646 
			 Lincolnshire PCT 4,739 5,028 5,409 
			 Liverpool PCT 8,485 7,585 8,134 
			 Luton Teaching PCT 1,309 1,569 1,723 
			 Manchester PCT 6,224 6,512 7,184 
			 Med way Teaching PCT 1,995 2,016 2,056 
			 Mid Essex PCT 1,749 1,878 2,216 
			 Middlesbrough PCT 2,203 2,200 2,348 
			 Milton Keynes PCT 685 1,656 1,494 
			 Newcastle PCT 2,755 3,163 3,305 
			 Newham PCT 2,590 2,586 2,742 
			 Norfolk PCT 4,067 4,441 5,002 
			 North East Essex PCT 1,763 1,755 2,021 
			 North East Lincolnshire PCT 1,322 1,398 1,122 
			 North Lancashire PCT 2,423 2,481 2,933 
			 North Lincolnshire PCT 1,325 1,417 1,189 
			 North Somerset PCT 1,708 1,659 2,020 
			 North Staffordshire PCT 1,462 1,228 1,961 
			 North Tyneside PCT 2,855 3,107 3,245 
			 North Yorkshire and York PCT 4,894 5,053 5,566 
			 Northamptonshire PCT 3,968 4,444 4,974 
			 Northumberland Care Trust 3,888 3,951 4,167 
			 Nottingham City PCT 2,332 2,504 2,908 
			 Nottinghamshire County PCT 4,256 4,733 5,474 
			 Oldham PCT 2,292 2,315 2,531 
			 Oxfordshire PCT 3,044 3,596 3,613 
			 Peterborough PCT 1,135 1,426 1,552 
			 Plymouth Teaching PCT 2,058 2,098 2,265 
			 Portsmouth City Teaching PCT 1,762 2,052 2,229 
			 Redbridge PCT 2,411 2,420 2,592 
			 Redcar and Cleveland PCT 1,669 1,750 1,894 
			 Richmond and Twickenham PCT 1,039 1,330 1,312 
			 Rotherham PCT 2,345 2,369 2,523 
			 Salford PCT 3,722 3,676 4,185 
			 Sandwell PCT 3,552 3,576 3,555 
			 Sefton PCT 3,472 3,648 3,643 
			 Sheffield PCT 3,532 3,860 4,367 
			 Shropshire County PCT 1,576 1,520 1,603 
			 Solihull PCT 1,611 1,861 2,033 
			 Somerset PCT 3,599 3,286 3,957 
			 South Birmingham PCT 3,542 3,549 3,576 
			 South East Essex PCT 2,606 2,987 3,239 
			 South Gloucestershire PCT 1,800 1,672 1,777 
			 South Staffordshire PCT 3,393 4,155 4,812 
			 South Tyneside PCT 1,480 1,591 1,962 
			 South West Essex PCT 2,094 2,351 2,476 
			 Southampton City PCT 1,408 1,640 2,067 
			 Southwark PCT 2,284 2,436 2,326 
			 Stockport PCT 2,895 3,071 3,325 
			 Stockton-on-Tees Teaching 1,550 1,753 1,822 
			 Stoke on Trent PCT 2,187 1,889 2,869 
			 Suffolk PCT 3,858 4,114 3,988 
			 Sunderland Teaching PCT 3,586 3,723 4,317 
			 Surrey PCT 7,037 7,753 8,353 
			 Sutton and Merton PCT 2,247 2,961 3,451 
			 Swindon PCT 1,257 1,263 1,626 
			 Tameside and Glossop PCT 2,827 3,093 3,284 
			 Telford and Wrekin PCT 1,315 1,155 1,158 
			 Torbay Care Trust 1,232 1,484 1,504 
			 Tower Hamlets PCT 1,785 1,858 1,617 
			 Trafford PCT 1,985 2,081 2,514 
			 Wakefield District PCT 2,509 2,969 3,058 
			 Walsall Teaching PCT 2,508 2,634 2,877 
			 Waltham Forest PCT 2,309 2,234 2,409 
			 Wandsworth PCT 2,146 2,308 2,347 
			 Warrington PCT 2,508 2,611 2,673 
			 Warwickshire PCT 3,423 3,540 4,324 
			 West Essex PCT 2,092 2,515 2,826 
			 West Hertfordshire PCT 2,799 3,211 3,738 
			 West Kent PCT 4,977 5,036 5,472 
			 West Sussex PCT 5,861 6,281 7,065 
			 Western Cheshire PCT 2,294 2,347 2,457 
			 Westminster PCT 1,743 1,843 1,969 
			 Wiltshire PCT 3,126 3,033 3,495 
			 Wirral PCT 4,859 5,318 5,296 
			 Wolverhampton City PCT 1,731 1,732 1,728 
			 Worcestershire PCT 3,725 4,074 4,714 
		
	
	
		
			  Number of admissions via A and E of patients with an alcohol-related condition by strategic health authority (SHA) of residence 
			  SHA name  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			 North East SHA 28,313 30,429 33,617 
			 North West SHA 80,614 84,243 90,792 
			 Yorkshire and The Humber SHA 40,698 43,696 47,921 
			 East Midlands SHA 31,706 34,125 37,970 
			 West Midlands SHA 43,109 44,923 51,386 
			 East of England SHA 34,998 38,754 42,153 
			 London SHA 62,574 66,351 70,287 
			 South East Coast SHA 33,082 36,027 39,603 
			 South Central SHA 21,431 24,388 26,839 
			 South West SHA 35,987 36,391 41,245 
			 Unknown/no fixed abode 7,750 9,488 8,539 
			 England 420,263 448,813 490,354 
			  Notes: Includes activity in English national health service hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector.  Alcohol-related conditions The number of alcohol-related admissions is based on the methodology developed by the North West Public Health Observatory. Figures for under 16s only include admissions where one or more of the following alcohol-specific conditions were listed: Alcoholic cardiomyopathy (I42.6) Alcoholic gastritis (K29.2) Alcoholic liver disease (K70) Alcoholic myopathy (G72.1) Alcoholic polyneuropathy (G62.1) Alcohol-induced pseudo-Cushing's syndrome (E24.4) Chronic pancreatitis (alcohol induced) (K86.0) Degeneration of nervous system due to alcohol (G31.2) Mental and behavioural disorders due to use of alcohol (F10) Accidental poisoning by and exposure to alcohol (X45) 
			 Ethanol poisoning (T51.0) Methanol poisoning (T51.1) Toxic effect of alcohol, unspecified (T51.9)  Number of episodes in which the patient had an alcohol-related primary or secondary diagnosis These figures represent the number of episodes where an alcohol-related diagnosis was recorded in any of the 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and seven prior to 2002-03) primary and secondary diagnosis fields in a HES record. Each episode is only counted once in each count, even if an alcohol-related diagnosis is recorded in more than one diagnosis field of the record.  Ungrossed data Figures have not been adjusted for shortfalls in data (ie the data are ungrossed).  Finished admission episodes A finished admission episode is the first period of inpatient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. Finished admission episodes are counted against the year in which the admission episode finishes. It should be noted that admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year.  Admissions via A and E Includes emergency admissions via the casualty department of the provider and the A and E department of another healthcare provider (Method of admission codes 21 and 28).  Primary diagnosis The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and seven prior to 2002-03) diagnosis fields in the HES data set and provides the main reason why the patient was admitted to hospital.  Secondary diagnosis As well as the primary diagnosis, there are up to 19 (13 from 2002-03 to 2007-08 and six prior to 2002-03) secondary diagnosis fields in HES that show other diagnoses relevant to the episode of care.  Data quality HES are compiled from data sent by more than 300 NHS trusts and primary care trusts (PCTs) in England. Data are also received from a number of independent sector organisations for activity commissioned by the English NHS. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data via HES processes. While this brings about improvement over time, some shortcomings remain.  Assessing growth through time HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. The quality and coverage of the data have improved over time. These improvements in information submitted by the NHS have been particularly marked in the earlier years and need to be borne in mind when analysing time series.  Some of the increase in figures for later years (particularly 2006-07 onwards) may be due to the improvement in the coverage of independent sector activity. Changes in NHS practice also need to be borne in mind when analysing time series. For example, a number of procedures may now be undertaken in out-patient settings and may no longer be accounted for in the HES data. This may account for any reductions in activity over time.  Assignment of episodes to years Years are assigned by the end of the first period of care in a patient's hospital stay.  Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), The NHS Information Centre for health and social care.

Bone Marrow Disorders: Donors

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 9 December 2009,  Official Report, column 469W, on bone marrow disorders: donors, if he will consider the merits of collecting statistics on UK and non-UK bone marrow donors in order to inform the development of a UK bone marrow donor recruitment strategy.

Gillian Merron: The United Kingdom is part of the Bone Marrow Donors Worldwide network. This provides reciprocal access to over 13 million bone marrow donors and umbilical cord blood units on registries across the world.
	The Department does not hold centrally statistics on the import or export of bone marrow. The most important challenge when searching for a stem cell unit for transplant is not where it comes from but whether it is a suitable match for the patient. Everyone's genetic history is complex. This means that finding a suitable match for a patient can prove very difficult, even when the international registries are used. This task is even more difficult if the condition is rare or there are other factors attributed to a patient's condition. Therefore, the value of collecting statistics on UK and non-UK bone marrow donors to inform the development of a UK bone marrow donor recruitment strategy has not been demonstrated.

Bone Marrow Disorders: Transplant Surgery

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) adults and  (b) child patients awaiting a bone marrow transplant have died as a result of the condition necessitating the transplant in each of the last five years.

Gillian Merron: The Department does not hold this information.

Cardiovascular System: Diseases

Brian Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what work his Department has carried out to develop national guidelines for primary care trusts on commissioning enhanced services for people with peripheral arterial disease.

Ann Keen: A primary care service framework was developed and published by NHS Primary Care Commissioning, in consultation with a number of stakeholders including the peripheral arterial disease (PAD) support group, Target PAD and the Department. These frameworks are specifically developed to provide support and guidance to national health service organisations (who choose to use them) to effectively commission and provide specific services.

Cardiovascular System: Diseases

Brian Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many vascular networks there are in England; and what his Department's definition is of the  (a) remit and  (b) purpose of such networks;
	(2)  how many cardiovascular networks are undertaking activity related to  (a) peripheral arterial disease and (b) co-ordinating network activity for peripheral arterial disease.

Ann Keen: There are 28 cardiac and stroke networks in England. The networks were set up to support implementation of the Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) National Service Framework (2000) and the national Stroke Strategy (2007). The remit of these networks is to foster joint working, support commissioning and undertake service improvement exercises, resulting in better services and improved outcomes for cardiac and stroke patients. Their purpose is to ensure that individuals experience co-ordinated care from their first contact with services through to rehabilitation and support after discharge from hospital. They are also a key vehicle for involving patients and carers as active partners in co-ordinating and supporting service development. The networks receive support from the NHS Heart Improvement Programme and the NHS Stroke Improvement Programme which are part of the wider NHS Improvement Programme. Further information about the networks is given in the CHD National Service Framework and the national Stroke Strategy, copies of which have already been placed in the Library.
	The Department does not monitor the activity of the cardiac and stroke networks.

Care Homes: Disabled

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans there are for the future of Douglass House in Bournemouth; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Hope: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave him on 27 October 2009,  Official Report, column 262W.

Departmental Surveys

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library a copy of the results of his Department's most recent staff survey; which organisation carried out the survey; and what the cost of the survey was.

Phil Hope: The Department of Health intends to publish its October 2009 staff survey results on the Department's website during March 2010. Following publication, we will place a copy of the results in the Library.
	The supplier for the Department's staff survey in October 2009 was ORC International who were procured by the Cabinet Office to deliver the first cross-Civil Service People Survey. The People Survey replaced all existing staff surveys in the civil service with a single questionnaire.
	The cost of the 2009-10 People Survey for the Department is £33,257. By procuring a single supplier for staff surveys in 2009-10, the civil service has saved 35 per cent. on the total cost of staff surveys in 2008-09.

Departmental Training

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 15 December 2009,  Official Report, column 1047W, on departmental training, how many civil servants attended the overseas training course; where it was held; when it was held; and what its title was.

Phil Hope: One official from the Department attended the 'Leadership across borders: A four country programme' course which took place during 2009. This is an international leadership initiative that aims to develop leadership skills in tackling complex, global issues. The course is designed for senior public leaders and was created by the UK National School of Government, the Australian Public Service Commission (also representing New Zealand) and the Canada School of Public Service. It consists of week-long modules in the UK, Australia and Canada. It also has a view to creating a network of high potential senior leaders covering the two hemispheres.
	Details of the programme are publicly available at:
	www.nationalschool.gov.uk/programmes/programme.asp?id=20999

Departmental Training

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many sessions of media training were organised for Ministers in his Department in each of the last three years.

Phil Hope: Training is provided to Ministers on a range of issues including handling the media, as part of their induction and continuing development in order to carry out their duties effectively under the Ministerial Code.

Drugs: Prisons

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many prisoners have participated in intensive drug treatment programmes in the last five years; and what assessment he has made of their effectiveness of such programmes.

Maria Eagle: I have been asked to reply.
	The following table provides figures for prisoners recorded as entering accredited drug treatment programmes in 2008-09, the latest period for which figures are available. These figures have been drawn from administrative data systems. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system.
	All accredited drug treatment programmes available in prisons are based on good practice found in the community. Evaluations to date specifically of prison drug treatment programmes run in England and Wales are limited and have not always met the highest standards of methodological robustness. However, they suggest that accredited programmes can reduce re-offending (Ramsay, M. (ed) (2003) Prisoners' Drug Use and Treatment: Seven Research Studies. Home Office Research Study 267. London: Home Office). International evidence supports these findings.
	The Prison Drug Treatment Strategy Review Group has been established to oversee a complex piece of work to take forward the recommendations of PricewaterhouseCoopers' 2007 report on prison drug treatment. An assessment of the available evidence base for drug treatment in prisons will form a part of this review. A report with recommendations will be produced by the end of March 2011.
	
		
			  Intervention type (2008-09)  Intervention starts (rounded to nearest 10) 
			 12-Step Programme 850 
			 Therapeutic Communities 260 
			 Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) programmes(1) 9,650 
			  of which:  
			 Short Duration Programme (5,550) 
			 Total 10,760 
			 (1) Prisons have in place a range of CBT accredited drug programmes, including: PASRO (Prisoner Addressing Substance Related Offending), STOP (Substance Treatment and Offending Programme), FOCUS (high security prisons only) and the Short Duration Programme

Employment Tribunals Service

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many industrial tribunals relating to his Department have been held in each of the last five years; and what the total cost to his Department was of such tribunals in each such year.

Phil Hope: There have been a very small number of employment tribunals relating to the Department in the last five years. As this is less than five in total, this information is not given on the grounds of confidentiality.
	The total costs of those cases settled in favour of claimants was £3,000.

General Practitioners

Howard Stoate: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will require primary care trusts to publish a complete list of GPs with special interests;
	(2)  if he will take steps to increase the number of GPs with special interests in  (a) obesity,  (b) weight management,  (c) nutrition,  (d) dermatology,  (e) sexual health,  (f) respiratory health,  (g) diabetes and  (h) cardiovascular disease.

Mike O'Brien: It is for primary care trusts to determine the best ways of meeting the health and health care needs of their local populations, including the potential contribution of general practitioners (GPs) with special interests towards the Government's overall objective of moving care closer to patients where it is appropriate and safe to do so. It is also for primary care trusts to decide in detail what information to publish about the services available locally.

General Practitioners

Howard Stoate: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will publish a list of GPs with special interests in  (a) obesity,  (b) weight management and  (c) nutrition;
	(2)  how many GPs have special interests in each specialty.

Mike O'Brien: Information on the number of general practitioners with special interests in individual specialties is not collected centrally and could not be obtained other than at disproportionate expense.

General Practitioners: Manpower

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many general practitioners were employed by the NHS in  (a) 1997 and (b) 2009.

Ann Keen: The headcount number of general practitioners (GPs) (excluding retainers) for 1997 and 2008 is shown in the following table.
	GP numbers for 2009 will not be available until March 2010, when the 2009 workforce census is published.
	
		
			  GPs in England (excluding GP retainers and GP registrars) 
			   Headcount  Full-time equivalent 
			 1997 28,046 26,359 
			 2008 34,010 30,675 
			  Source: NHS Information Centre 
		
	
	Since 1997, the number of doctors in training has increased by 60 per cent. to reflect the greater interest in part-time and flexible working across medicine, particularly in primary care.

General Practitioners: Working Hours

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many GP practices had extended opening hours in  (a) 1997 and  (b) 2009.

Mike O'Brien: Data was not collected in 1997 on numbers of general practitioner (GP) practices offering extended opening. Information last collected in July 2009 showed that 6,384 of the 8,279 GP practices in England (77.1 per cent.) had extended their opening hours, offering their patients access to routine appointments. We expect this to continue to increase.

Health Professions: Regulation

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he has made a recent estimate of the  (a) time taken to process cases and  (b) the number of outstanding cases awaiting adjudication by the (i) General Medical Council, (ii) Nursing and Midwifery Council, (iii) Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain and (iv) Health Professions Council; and if he will make a statement.

Ann Keen: The Department does not routinely collect this information. The health care profession's regulators are independent statutory bodies.

Health Services: Armed Forces

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the  (a) quality of service provision and  (b) adequacy of funding for (i) prosthetics and (ii) orthotics care in NHS trusts given to injured (A) service and (B) non-service personnel.

Mike O'Brien: Overall quality of service provision within the national health service is monitored by the Care Quality Commission and funding for prosthetic and orthotic care and services is provided within the NHS budget. The provision of care and service required by individuals, whether they be service or non-service personnel, is determined through multidisciplinary assessments to ensure clinical appropriateness. I refer the hon. Lady to the written statement made on 11 January 2010,  Official Report, column 15WS, around medical care for veterans, in which is announced a package of measures to support service personnel, together with a guarantee of early and comprehensive assessment of long-term needs for those sustaining serious injury.

Homeopathy: Merseyside

Louise Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was spent on NHS homeopathic treatment in Merseyside in the last year for which information is available.

Gillian Merron: The information requested is not collected centrally.

Hospitals: Infectious Diseases

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what tests are available to detect  (a) MRSA and  (b) clostridium difficile infection; and by what means such tests are deployed in the NHS.

Ann Keen: Diagnostic tests for the presence and illness caused by both Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus and Clostridium difficile can be divided into the following categories:
	simple methods using routine culture that rely on the initial growth of the organism from a clinical specimen and may take 24 to 72 hours to produce a result;
	rapid tests that may detect parts of these bacteria, such as toxins, enzymes or nucleic acids such as DNA or RNA (molecular tests) and may produce results in hours; and
	combinations of these methods designed to improve performance and minimise cost.
	The actual choice of test or combination of tests is a decision made by each laboratory. This decision is based on experience and national guidance, for example diagnostic methods published by the Health Protection Agency.

Hospitals: Infectious Diseases

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent progress has been made on the deployment in the NHS of new tests for  (a) MRSA and  (b) clostridium difficile; and what steps he is taking to ensure the deployment in the NHS of the most accurate, rapid and cost-effective tests available.

Ann Keen: Information on the tests used by National Health Service laboratories is not collected centrally.
	We provide advice and guidance to help laboratories develop testing strategies and measures taken include for:
	 Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA)
	The Department has held productive discussions with the manufacturers of these testing kits and has funded research on the practical implementation of rapid molecular technology in two clinical centres.
	Guidance on testing for MRSA screening.
	 Clostridium difficile (C. difficile ) infection
	Advice was issued by the Department of Health and the Health Protection Agency (HPA) on testing strategies in March 2009, following the publication of the Centre for Evidence Based Purchasing report on the performance of C. difficile test kits. The Department and HPA are currently undertaking further work to refine this guidance.
	The Department has also initiated discussions with manufacturers on how they can improve the accuracy and specificity of their C. difficile testing kits.

Neurology

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment he has made of the  (a) quality of care provided for neuro-disability and neuro-rehabilitation patients and  (b) merits of a national service framework for neuro-rehabilitation.

Ann Keen: We have made no recent assessment of the quality of care for neuro-disability and neuro-rehabilitation patients, or the merits of a national service framework for neuro-rehabilitation.

NHS: Non-Profit Making Associations

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which NHS services in the East of England are considering a right to request to set up a social enterprise; how many staff employed by such services would be transferred to such an enterprise if established; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Hope: This information is not held centrally and is a matter for local national health service organisations.

Parkinson's Disease

Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he has taken to ensure the implementation of the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence guidelines on Parkinson's Disease.

Ann Keen: We have no plans to ensure the implementation of the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence's clinical (NICE) guidelines on Parkinson's disease. It is the responsibility of individual health professionals to ensure they comply with all existing clinical guidelines when providing health and social care.
	From April 2009, the Care Quality Commission took over from the Healthcare Commission and will consider, in discussion with stakeholders including NICE, how to take account of NICE guidance as it develops its compliance criteria.
	In December 2009 I wrote to all strategic health authorities reinforcing the importance of implementing National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence's guidance, and the National Service Framework for Long-term neurological Conditions in delivering high quality, accessible services for those living with Parkinson's disease.

Prescriptions: Fees and Charges

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) cancer patients and  (b) people being treated for the effects of cancer treatment have received free prescriptions since their introduction for such patients.

Mike O'Brien: A cancer patient in England is eligible to apply for a prescription charge exemption certificate if he or she is undergoing treatment for cancer, the effects of cancer or the effects of cancer treatment. However, the application process does not distinguish between these grounds for exemption. By the end of 2009, the number of valid prescription charge exemption certificate applications processed by National Health Service Business Services Authority, where cancer was the only medical condition ticked on the FP92A application form, was almost 74,000.

Primary Care Trusts: East of England

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with the East of England Strategic Health Authority on the status of primary care trust (PCT) provider organisations within the PCT; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Hope: None. The Department holds monthly meetings with Transforming Community Services leads from each strategic health authority at which issues such as the future provision of community services are discussed.

CHILDREN, SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES

CAFCASS

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many  (a) family court advisers and  (b) active self-employed contractors worked for the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service at the latest date for which figures are available.

Dawn Primarolo: The employment and payment of staff are operational matters for CAFCASS. Nationally, as of 11 December 2009, CAFCASS had 1,291 family court advisors and 266 self-employed contractors actively working on cases.

CAFCASS

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  how many reviews Ofsted has undertaken in relation to the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS) in each CAFCASS region in the last 12 months;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of each Ofsted inspection of CAFCASS and Support Service in each year since such inspections began.

Dawn Primarolo: This is a matter for Ofsted. HM Chief Inspector, Christine Gilbert, has written to the hon. Member and a copy of her reply has been placed in the House Libraries.
	 Letter from Christine Gilbert, dated 17 December 2009:
	Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, for a response.
	In April 2007 the duty to inspect Cafcass passed from Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Court Administration to Ofsted. From April 2007 to mid 2008, Ofsted undertook three inspections based on the old Cafcass structure (co-terminous with the nine Government Office regions).
	In December 2008 Ofsted began piloting a new framework for the inspection of Cafcass. The framework is based on inspection of a Cafcass service area, the Cafcass operational business unit, of which there are 21 across England. Ofsted will inspect all the Cafcass service areas by August 2011. As at December 2009, Ofsted has reported on seven service areas, and will report on an eighth inspection in early January 2010.
	A copy of this reply has been sent to Rt Hon Dawn Primarolo MP, Minister of State for Children, Young People and Families, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.
	 Letter from Christine Gilbert, dated 31 December 2009:
	Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, for a response.
	From 2001 to April 2007 inspection of Cafcass was undertaken by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Court Administration (formerly HM Magistrates Court Service Inspectorate). Ofsted does not have cost data for this period.
	From April 2007 to mid 2008, Ofsted undertook three inspections based on the old Cafcass structure (co-terminous with the nine Government Office regions), using the legacy inspection framework. During the summer of 2008 Ofsted developed a new framework and methodology for the inspection of Cafcass, which had re-structured into 21 service areas. Each service area will be inspected every three years.
	The costs of this inspection programme to Ofsted in 2007/8 were £435,843. In 2008/9 they were £397,402. Both figures include corporate overheads and development costs, where incurred. The first three year inspection cycle will be completed by August 2011.
	A copy of this reply has been sent to Rt Hon Dawn Primarolo MP, Minister of State for Children, Young People and Families, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.

Children Act 1989

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families on how many occasions Section 47 statutory interventions under the Children Act 1989 were issued by Essex County Council for 16 to 18 year-olds in each of the last five years.

Dawn Primarolo: Information on the number of section 47 inquiries carried out by each local authority is not available for individual age groups.

Children: Adoption

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many children have been classified as having adoption in their best interest in each year since 2001.

Dawn Primarolo: The information requested is not available.

Children: Adoption

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many adopted children of each ethnicity adopted in the year ended 31 March 2009 had waited longer than  (a) six,  (b) 12,  (c) 18,  (d) 24,  (e) 30,  (f) 36,  (g) 42,  (h) 48,  (i ) 54 and  (j) 60 months to be adopted following the decision that adoption was in their best interest.

Dawn Primarolo: The number of looked-after-children of each ethnicity adopted in the year ending 31 March 2009 who had waited longer than  (a) six,  (b) 12,  (c) 18,  (d) 24,  (e) 30,  (f) 36,  (g) 42,  (h) 48,  (i) 54 and  (j) 60 months to be adopted following a local authority decision that they should be placed for adoption can be found in the following table. The figures shown for the time between the local authority decision and the date of the making of the adoption order are cumulative.
	
		
			  Looked-after-children adopted during the year by the time between the decision that a child should be placed for adoption and the making of the adoption order, by ethnic origin( 1, 2, 3) , year ending 31 March 2009,  coverage:  England 
			  Number 
			Time between decision that a child should be placed for adoption and date of adoption 
			   All children  looked  after adopted during the year  Over 6 months  Over 12 months  Over 18 months  Over 24 months  Over 30 months  Over 36 months  Over 42 months  Over 48 months  Over 54 months  Over 60 months 
			  All children looked after adopted during the year 3,300 3,200 2,500 1,400 760 450 250 150 100 70 40 
			 
			  Ethnic origin
			 White 2,700 2,600 2,000 1,100 590 350 180 100 70 40 30 
			 Mixed 410 400 340 220 110 70 40 30 20 20 10 
			 Asian or Asian British 70 60 50 30 10 - - - 0 0 0 
			 Black or Black British 90 90 90 60 40 30 20 - 10 10 10 
			 Other ethnic groups 20 20 10 10 10 - - 0 0 0 0 
			 (1) The waiting time has been calculated as the number of days between the date the LA decide adoption is in the child's best interest and the date the child is then adopted.  (2) These figures are presented on a cumulative basis e.g. a child that is included in the 'Over 12 months' category has also been included in the 'Over 6 months' category.  (3 )Rounding and suppression: To ensure that no individual can be identified from statistical tables, we use conventions for the rounding and suppression of very small numbers. At national level numbers have been rounded to the nearest 100 if they exceed 1,000 and to the nearest 10 otherwise. Numbers from 1 to 5 inclusive have been suppressed, being replaced in the table by a (-). It has been necessary to suppress other figures whenever it would be possible to calculate the value of a suppressed number by means of simple arithmetic. The rule applied in these circumstances has been to suppress the next smallest data item provided its value is strictly less than 20.   Source:  SSDA903.

Children: Adoption

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many adopted children of each age at the time of approval for adoption waited longer than  (a) six,  (b) 12,  (c) 18,  (d) 24,  (e) 30,  (f) 36,  (g) 42,  (h) 48, (i) 54 and (j) 60 months to be adopted following the decision that adoption was in their best interest in each year since 2001.

Dawn Primarolo: The number of looked after children adopted in the years ending 31 March 2001 to 2009, who had waited longer than  (a) six,  (b) 12,  (c) 18,  (d) 24,  (e) 30,  (f) 36,  (g) 42,  (h) 48, (i) 54 and (j) 60 months to be adopted following a local authority decision that they should be placed for adoption, by age at the time the decision was made that they should be placed for adoption, has been placed in the House Libraries.
	The figures shown for the time between the local authority decision and the date of the making of the adoption order are cumulative.

Children: Adoption

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families for how many children in each local authority area adoption was determined to be in their best interest in the most recent 12-month period for which figures are available; and how many of those children were placed for adoption by  (a) their local authority,  (b) a private adoption agency and  (c) a voluntary adoption agency.

Dawn Primarolo: Information on the number of looked-after-children for whom the local authority decision was that they should be placed for adoption is not available.

Children: Social Services

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recent estimate he has made of the average amount of time taken to complete an initial assessment of children referred to children's social care.

Dawn Primarolo: Data on the average amount of time taken to complete an initial assessment of children referred to children's social care are not held centrally. We do however collect data on the percentage of initial assessments completed within seven working days of referral. In 2008-09 this figure was 72 per cent.

Departmental Furniture

Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much his Department has spent on furniture for use in the office assigned to him since June 2007.

Diana Johnson: A total of £1,158.76 has been spent to acquire additional furniture for the Secretary of State's office since June 2007.

Departmental Official Cars

Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much expenditure his Department has incurred in respect of official car services for  (a) him and  (b) each other Minister in his Department in each quarter since June 2007.

Diana Johnson: For financial year 2007-08, I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement made by the then Secretary of State for Transport (Ruth Kelly) on 22 July 2008,  Official Report, column 117WS.
	For financial year 2008-09, I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement made by hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport (Paul Clark), on 16 July 2009,  Official Report, column 80WS.

Early Intervention

Graham Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what his policy is on early intervention; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: It is the Government's intention to put early intervention and prevention at the heart of children's services.
	That is why we set out in the Children's Plan that by 2010,
	we will expect Children's Trusts to have in place consistent high quality arrangements to provide identification and early intervention for all children and young people who need additional help in relation to their health, education, care and behaviour, including help for their parents as appropriate.
	Over recent years there has been massive investment to support early intervention. There is now a children's centre in every neighbourhood and almost 90 per cent. of schools are delivering the 'core offer' of extended services including childcare, health services and extra-curricular activities. We are also trialling programmes such as the Family Nurse Partnerships and Family Intervention Programmes in several areas.
	We will shortly publish a consultation document on early intervention to help local partners to improve the quality and consistency of support for vulnerable children and families.

Family Law

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the outcome was of the time recording exercise undertaken in 2004 on the time being spent on public and private family law cases.

Dawn Primarolo: This is an operational matter for CAFCASS. I have asked the chief executive of CAFCASS, Anthony Douglas, to respond by letter to the hon. Member. A copy of the letter will be placed in the House Libraries.

Foster Care

Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  how many kinship care foster placements there were in each of the last 30 years;
	(2)  how many  (a) foster and  (b) kinship care foster placements there were in each local authority area in each of the last five years.

Dawn Primarolo: Information on the number of foster placements by local authority and type of placement for the last five years has been placed in the House Libraries. Further years can only be provided at disproportionate cost. This information is only available from 1992 onwards.

Foster Care

Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of children  (a) fostered and  (b) adopted were placed with (i) grandparents, (ii) other relatives and (iii) friends of the family in the last 12 months.

Dawn Primarolo: The latest period for which figures are available covers the 12 months to 31 March 2009. There were 65,500 children looked after during the year ending 31 March 2009 under a foster placement; 10,500 (16 per cent.) of these were looked after by family or friends and 55,000 (84 per cent.) of these were looked after by other carers. These figures exclude those looked after under an agreed series of short-term placements. Information on the relationship of the foster carer to the child is not collected therefore it is not possible to provide the full detail requested.
	Information on the relationship of adopted children to their adoptees is not collected centrally by the Department.

GCSE: Disadvantaged

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families in what proportion of schools in each index of multiple deprivation decile less than 30 per cent. of pupils obtained five A* to C grades at GCSE including English and mathematics but excluding equivalents in the  (a) earliest and  (b) most recent year for which figures are available.

Vernon Coaker: The information can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Home Education

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families when his Department will publish its analysis of the responses to its consultation on the Badman Report on elective home education in England.

Diana Johnson: The response to the Home Education: registration and monitoring proposals public consultation was published on 11 January 2010. It can be found on the Department's Consultation Unit website on:
	http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/consultations/index.cfm?menu=3title=Archive%20and%20results

Pre-School Education: Finance

Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what plans he has to extend the free entitlement to early education to two- year-olds who live in families with modest and middle incomes.

Dawn Primarolo: The Government will continue to make progress on the long-term ambition set out by the Prime Minister to extend the offer of free part time nursery places for all two-year-olds whose parents want them. Already over 20,000 two-year-olds have access to free places and the reforms we are making to tax relief for child care vouchers will allow us to go further.

Social Services: Leeds

John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much Leeds social services spent on children's services in each year since 2001.

Dawn Primarolo: The available information on how much Leeds local authority spent on children's social care in each year since 2001 is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Gross expenditure on children's services from 2001-02 to 2007-08 
			   Gross expenditure (£000) 
			 2001-02 58,616 
			 2002-03 62,347 
			 2003-04 70,449 
			 2004-05 77,987 
			 2005-06 81,675 
			 2006-07 98,130 
			 2007-08 107,542 
			  Notes: 1. Responsibility for collecting financial information on local authority spend on children's social function was passed to the DCSF in 2008-09. 2. Figures used in this PQ answer were obtained from the Department of Health.

Supervised Homes

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many places in supervised homes were available for 16-and 17-year-olds in each month of the last two years.

Dawn Primarolo: This information is not collected centrally.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families when he plans to answer Question  (a) 3202667,  (b) 302668,  (c) 302936,  (d) 303105 and  (e) 303139, tabled on 25 November 2009.

Diana Johnson: Parliamentary questions 302668 and 302936 have been answered today. PQs 303105, 303139 and 302667 will be answered in due course.
	I apologise for the delay in answering these parliamentary questions.

JUSTICE

Departmental Fines

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what powers  (a) his Department and  (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies has to impose administrative penalties; what the statutory basis is for each such power; and how much (i) his Department and its predecessors and (ii) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies has recovered in administrative penalties in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available.

Jack Straw: Administrative financial penalties arise where a Department has the authority to charge a financial penalty without the need to resort to court proceedings. They exclude interest charged on late payment of invoices.
	The Ministry of Justice's statutory powers to impose administrative penalties are confined to the Legal Services Complaints Commissioner (LSCC, an office of the Ministry of Justice) and the Legal Services Board (LSB, an executive non-departmental public body).
	 The Legal Services Complaints Commissioner (LSCC)
	The Legal Services Complaints Commissioner (LSCC) had the power under section 52 of the Access to Justice Act 1999 to require the Law Society to provide information on how it deals with complaints, to make recommendations about the complaints system, and to set targets for complaints handling. In addition, the Commissioner previously had the power to require the Law Society to submit a plan for improved complaints handling and to levy a penalty on the Law Society if it failed to deliver an adequate plan or failed in the delivery of that plan. These powers were reduced in April 2009 in preparation for the closure of the Commissioner's office in March 2010. The maximum penalty that could be imposed was the lower of £1 million and 1 per cent. of the annual income of the Law Society.
	In 2006-07 the Commissioner exercised this power and imposed a penalty of £250,000, later reduced to £220,000. In 2007-2008 the Commissioner announced that she was considering imposing a penalty of £275,000 for failure to meet her targets. However, following a series of discussions with the Law Society, a regulatory settlement was agreed which meant that the penalty was invested in client care measures by the Law Society.
	 The Legal Services Board (LSB)
	The new Legal Services Board (LSB), regulating legal services provision by approved regulators, became fully operational from 1 January 2010. The LSB has a range of enforcement powers available to it under sections 31-48 of the Legal Services Act 2007. Its power to impose a financial penalty on approved regulators under section 37 of the Act is subject to the requirement that the LSB makes rules prescribing the maximum financial penalty. The LSB has prescribed the maximum financial penalty it may impose on an approved regulator as 5 per cent. of an approved regulator's regulatory income for its most recent accounting period.
	All other penalties levied by the department or its agencies are through the courts.

Departmental Travel

Eleanor Laing: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what mode of transport Ministers and officials of his Department used to travel to each of the deliberative events on British values; and in what class those who travelled to such events by rail travelled.

Michael Wills: The means of transport and costs are set out in the following table.
	
		
			  Table showing the mode of transport Ministers and MoJ officials used to travel to each of the deliberative events (including details of what class they travelled to each event) 
			   Date  Minister  MoJ Officials  Mode of travel  Type of class travelled  Costs to MoJ (£) 
			  Regional events   
			 London 17 October 2009 1 - Return taxi/London underground n/a 72.64 
			 London 17 October 2009 - 6 Overground rail/London underground/bicycle n/a (1)- 
			
			 Sheffield 24 October 2009 1 - Car-Government spokesperson was local MP and was given a lift to the event. n/a 0 
			 Sheffield 24 October 2009 - 4 Rail Standard class returns 357.50 
			
			 Cardiff 24 October 2009 1 - Ministerial car n/a 0 
			 Cardiff 24 October 2009 - 3 Rail Standard class returns 215.00 
			
			 Edinburgh 31 October 2009 1 - Ministerial car to and from Glasgow n/a 0 
			 Edinburgh 31 October 2009 - 3 Plane and rail (three return flights plus Gatwick Express train for two officials). Plane economy class returns. Rail standard class returns. 699.77 
			
			 Gateshead 31 October 2009 (2)- - - - - 
			 Gateshead 31 October 2009 - 3 Plane and rail (two x MoJ officials travelled by rail. one x MoJ official took return flight to Newcastle from Heathrow). Rail-standard class returns. Plane-Euro class. 542.00 
			
			  Reconvened events   
			 Gateshead 21 November 2009 1 - Personal car n/a 0 
			 Gateshead 21 November 2009 - 5 Plane and rail-(two x MoJ officials-one way flights to Newcastle-return trip from Newcastle to London by train). Rail-three x standard class returns. One x standard class one way, one x first class one way. Flights-one x world traveller/one x economy. 1,015.19 
			
			 Birmingham 28 November 2009 1 - Rail First class returns 61.50 
			 Birmingham 28 November 2009 - 5 Rail Three x standard and two x first class returns. 406.00 
			 Total costs - - - - - 3,369.60 
			 (1) No travel costs claimed as officials used season tickets. (2) No Minister.

Elections

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment has been made of the potential effect on levels of electoral fraud of general election counts taking place the day after polling.

Michael Wills: Under section 10 of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000, the Electoral Commission is responsible for producing advice and guidance for electoral administrators to follow at UK parliamentary elections. The Electoral Commission has issued advice for (acting) returning officers that security procedures must be in place for the storage of ballot boxes and the ballot papers, where there is a break in proceedings or where they have decided to count on Friday. The decision as to the timing of the count at an election is for the relevant returning officer.
	Under section 5 of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000, the Electoral Commission is required to produce a report on the administration of each general election in the UK. The Government will study this carefully and respond to any issues that emerge.

Electoral Register

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the reasons are for the time taken to implement the CORE electoral registration programme.

Michael Wills: A detailed specification for the Co-ordinated On-line Record of Electors (CORE) has been completed. However, the Government have paused the CORE project to allow time for the detailed arrangements for supporting the implementation of individual electoral registration to be developed, since individual electoral registration may impact on the design of the CORE system. In the meantime, work has continued on the implementation of electoral registration data standards. I wrote to the Labour, Conservative, Liberal Democrat and Scottish National Parties and Plaid Cymru on 24 July 2009 setting out these considerations in more detail.

Electoral Register: Expenditure

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the cost to the public purse of the  (a) LASER and  (b) CORE electoral registration projects have been to date.

Michael Wills: I refer the hon. Member to my previous answer of 26 November 2009,  Official Report, column 1653W.
	It is not possible to accurately quantify the cost of the LASER project as not all the information is available. This project pre-dated the CORE electoral registration project and was managed by the former Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. No capital costs were incurred.
	The cost of the CORE project to date, excluding staff costs, is £3,760,981. The increase since my previous answer is attributable to £676,333 grant in aid for local authorities to support the implementation of electoral registration data standards and £5,000 for the market testing of possible procurement options.
	This expenditure will produce benefits for electoral registration generally, by improving the accuracy and utility of the data within the local authority, and there are also potential benefits for the development of individual registration, irrespective of whether or not CORE goes ahead.

Family Law Act 1996

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many applications for an occupational order under sections 33 to 41 of the Family Law Act 1996 have been  (a) made and  (b) granted in each year since their introduction.

Bridget Prentice: The following tables show the number of occupation orders applied for, and the number of occupation orders granted, in each court area in each year since 2003. The data are taken from the HMCS FamilyMan database and the applications figures do not include applications for arrest warrants.
	
		
			  Occupation orders applied for in England and Wales, by court  a rea, 2003 - 08 
			  Area  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008 
			 Avon and Somerset 216 230 215 243 215 180 
			 Bedfordshire, Essex and Herts. 680 547 575 493 451 413 
			 Birmingham, Coventry, Solihull and Warwickshire 330 345 258 225 220 227 
			 Black Country, Staffordshire and West Mercia 476 453 449 377 329 294 
			 Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Suffolk 406 385 391 343 344 309 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside 413 369 334 314 227 230 
			 Cleveland, Durham and Northumbria 686 625 591 646 532 384 
			 Cumbria and Lancashire 354 316 325 323 260 199 
			 Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire 245 217 197 182 142 125 
			 Devon and Cornwall 465 405 385 355 360 299 
			 Dorset, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire 419 404 372 284 247 283 
			 Greater Manchester 311 274 292 300 232 188 
			 Hampshire and Isle of Wight 424 369 383 389 328 288 
			 Humber and South Yorkshire 523 456 402 330 323 312 
			 Kent 326 304 270 215 244 250 
			 Lincolnshire, Leicestershire and Rutland and Northamptonshire 268 292 273 242 247 260 
			 London Civil and Family 2,970 2,474 2,590 2,419 2,098 2,021 
			 Mid and West Wales 138 106 109 99 95 88 
			 North and West Yorkshire 593 573 576 650 618 501 
			 North Wales 133 101 104 70 54 93 
			 South East Wales 173 150 131 104 115 97 
			 Surrey and Sussex 524 444 468 445 370 402 
			 Thames Valley 487 400 352 336 300 295 
			 England and Wales 11,560 10,239 10,042 9,384 8,351 7,738 
		
	
	
		
			  Occupation orders made in England and Wales, by court area, 2003 - 08 
			  Area  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008 
			 Avon and Somerset 155 170 149 166 161 123 
			 Bedfordshire, Essex and Herts. 419 349 372 279 320 324 
			 Birmingham, Coventry, Solihull and Warwickshire 223 283 240 239 247 157 
			 Black Country, Staffordshire and West Mercia 545 447 425 373 304 185 
			 Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Suffolk 267 301 336 295 292 184 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside 435 374 418 287 192 148 
			 Cleveland, Durham and Northumbria 719 551 615 710 513 242 
			 Cumbria and Lancashire 417 446 427 306 281 147 
			 Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire 184 116 111 131 151 92 
			 Devon and Cornwall 450 380 366 294 325 171 
			 Dorset, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire 473 401 306 241 252 247 
			 Greater Manchester 310 248 263 245 184 115 
			 Hampshire and Isle of Wight 257 265 294 291 233 123 
			 Humber and South Yorkshire 409 302 298 253 211 175 
			 Kent 272 285 217 169 178 162 
			 Lincolnshire, Leicestershire and Rutland and Northamptonshire 268 332 269 288 278 159 
			 London Civil and Family 3,175 2,489 2,224 1,965 1,627 1,377 
			 Mid and West Wales 115 68 80 72 92 75 
			 North and West Yorkshire 437 417 464 543 437 328 
			 North Wales 124 90 98 52 47 62 
			 South East Wales 181 157 113 103 95 61 
			 Surrey and Sussex 472 350 422 349 267 151 
			 Thames Valley 486 347 378 328 258 291 
			 England and Wales 10,793 9,168 8,885 7,979 6,945 5,099 
		
	
	Area level figures are not available before 2003. However, the following table gives, for each year from 1998 to 2002, the most recently published national figures.
	
		
			  Occupation orders applied for, and made, in England and Wales between 1998 and 2002 
			   Applications made  Orders made 
			 1998 11,147 9,023 
			 1999 9,757 8,319 
			 2000 10,295 9,736 
			 2001 10,692 9,789 
			 2002 11,924 11,763

General Election 2010: Young People

William Cash: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps have been taken to encourage 18 to 24 year-olds to vote in the next general election.

Michael Wills: Section 69 of the Electoral Administration Act 2006 places local electoral officers under a duty to encourage participation at statutory elections. The Government have established the electoral participation fund to support electoral officers undertaking novel and innovative projects, including activities to support the participation of young people.
	In addition, under section 13 of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000, the Electoral Commission has a statutory responsibility to run public awareness campaigns to promote voter registration and to provide information on electoral events. I have been informed by the Electoral Commission that they will be running a public awareness campaign in the lead up to the next general election to encourage people to register to vote. By selecting particular media channels, the campaign will be targeted at groups less likely to be on the electoral register, particularly 18 to 24 year-olds. The campaign will include television, radio and press advertising, along with work on social networking websites. Through its partnership grants programme, the Electoral Commission has also funded other organisations working to increase democratic participation among young people, including Banardos, the Prince's Trust and UK Youth Parliament.

Homicide

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many of those convicted of murder since 1997 have been placed in open prisons; and how many such offenders have escaped.

Maria Eagle: Figures on the number of prisoners convicted of murder since 1997 who have been placed in open conditions is not available centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost by accessing the individual record of each such prisoner.
	Transfer of any prisoner to open conditions will only take place if continued detention in closed conditions is no longer necessary for the protection of the public. Open conditions allow prisoners to find work, re-establish family ties and reintegrate into the community. All these are essential components for successful resettlement and an important factor in protecting the public.
	Data on absconds from open prison by index offence type have been recorded centrally since 1 April 2004. Between April 2004 and November 2009, 69 prisoners convicted of murder have absconded from open prisons. Three of these prisoners are recorded as still being at large.
	The rate of abscond from open prisons continues to fall and absconds are now at their lowest level since centralised reporting of this type of incident began in 1995.

Hotels

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many hotel room nights were booked by officials in  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies in each year since 2007; and how much (i) his Department and (ii) its agencies spent on fees of third-party agents in relation to booking hotel accommodation in each such year.

Jack Straw: The information requested is set out as follows:
	 Number of rooms booked
	The number of hotel rooms booked by the Ministry and its agencies can only be determined at disproportionate cost. Although bookings should normally be made through contracted booking agents, they may also be made by individuals directly with the costs being reimbursed through expense claims or met through the Government Procurement Card. To determine the number of hotel night rooms booked by individuals directly would involve examination of thousands of individual claims and statements held locally across the department and its agencies.
	All hotel bookings by Ministers and civil servants are undertaken in accordance with the Ministerial Code and the Civil Service Management Code respectively. The annual departmental resource accounts disclose expenditure on travel, subsistence and hospitality in notes 10 (administration expenditure) and 11 (programme expenditure). Resource accounts were published by the Ministry of Justice for 2007-08 and 2008-09 and prior to that by the Ministry's predecessor, the Department for Constitutional Affairs. All published accounts can be found at:
	http://www.official-documents.gov.uk/
	 Fees paid to booking agents
	The majority of hotel bookings are arranged through travel management companies employed by the Ministry to obtain best value for money options. All other expenditure is incurred only on production of valid receipts.
	The Ministry has contracts with two designated booking agents working for different parts of the business. Booking agents are contracted to secure the best value for money rates available. The Ministry does not pay fees directly to either service provider. The booking agents are remunerated instead through commission paid by the hotels themselves. The Ministry does not have any details about the amount of commission earned by booking agents acting in its behalf.

Legal Services Commission: Chesterfield

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many Legal Services Commission matter starts for  (a) welfare benefit,  (b) housing,  (c) employment,  (d) debt,  (e) immigration,  (f) community care and  (g) family law cases in Chesterfield were given in each of the last five years; and how many such starts are being offered in the current rounds of bidding.

Bridget Prentice: The information requested is shown in the following tables.
	 Matter starts for the last five years
	Figures for the number of new matter starts allocated in the categories specified for the last five years are shown in the table. The figures shown include all solicitor and not-for-profit offices in Chesterfield.
	
		
			  Data  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09  2009-10 
			 Community care 15 7 0 0 0 
			 Debt 260 286 327 362 413 
			 Employment 85 107 222 312 351 
			 Housing 229 270 331 376 550 
			 Immigration asylum 0 7 7 8 12 
			 Immigration non-asylum 12 30 33 47 54 
			 Family 1,469 1,257 1,171 1,359 1,199 
			 Welfare benefit 281 333 254 197 198 
		
	
	Due to the way in which the LSC contracted with not-for-profit offices prior to October 2007 the figures included for these providers prior to that time are actual cases started rather than matter starts allocated.
	 Matter starts for the current bid rounds
	The new civil contract is due to begin in October 2010. The bid rounds for Immigration Services opened on 30 November 2009. New matter starts are now being allocated by procurement area rather than bid zone. For immigration services, Chesterfield is included in the midlands and east of England region. 9,340 asylum new matter starts and 7,990 non-asylum new matter starts have been made available in the current tender.
	Bid rounds for all other civil services are due to open in February. Future allocations are in the process of being finalised and will be published in February 2010.

Non-molestation Orders

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many applications for a non-molestation order have been  (a) made and  (b) granted in each court area in each year since their introduction.

Bridget Prentice: The following tables show the number of non-molestation orders applied for, and the number of non-molestation orders granted, in each court area in each year since 2003. The data are taken from the HMCS FamilyMan database and the applications figures do not include applications for arrest warrants.
	
		
			  Non-molestation orders applied for in England and Wales, by court area, 2003 - 08 
			  Area  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008 
			 Avon and Somerset 509 459 456 499 437 481 
			 Bedfordshire. Essex and Herts. 864 760 771 685 707 851 
			 Birmingham, Coventry, Solihull and Warwickshire 543 565 456 436 398 446 
			 Black Country, Staffordshire and West Mercia 792 778 728 674 564 626 
			 Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Suffolk 582 600 580 522 531 528 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside 608 571 512 500 433 516 
			 Cleveland, Durham and Northumbria 1,319 1,221 1,198 1,342 1,231 1,285 
			 Cumbria and Lancashire 585 570 588 592 575 553 
			 Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire 395 332 309 317 316 340 
			 Devon and Cornwall 689 562 501 479 474 428 
			 Dorset, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire 646 581 497 444 411 533 
			 Greater Manchester 591 545 531 545 431 402 
			 Hampshire and Isle of Wight 544 545 529 518 501 462 
			 Humber and South Yorkshire 1,084 924 910 868 806 751 
			 Kent 503 482 424 341 364 472 
			 Lincolnshire, Leicestershire and Rutland and Northamptonshire 404 451 411 391 411 471 
			 London Civil and Family 4,578 4,624 4,825 4,616 4,272 4,747 
			 Mid and West Wales 215 149 164 150 159 136 
			 North and West Yorkshire 1,264 1,244 1,357 1,418 1,426 1,599 
			 North Wales 199 160 157 125 110 147 
			 South East Wales 262 251 184 170 196 181 
			 Surrey and Sussex 748 635 705 691 610 695 
			 Thames Valley 675 565 539 562 508 491 
			 England and Wales 18,599 17,574 17,332 16,885 15,871 17,141 
		
	
	
		
			  Non-molestation orders made in England and Wales, by court area, 2003 - 08 
			  Area  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008 
			 Avon and Somerset 578 523 524 561 491 541 
			 Bedfordshire, Essex and Herts. 851 795 787 715 772 946 
			 Birmingham, Coventry, Solihull and Warwickshire 505 734 671 613 600 537 
			 Black Country, Staffordshire and West Mercia 1,158 1,121 1,012 969 781 773 
			 Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Suffolk 760 837 831 808 742 647 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside 934 777 793 695 561 596 
			 Cleveland, Durham and Northumbria 1,977 1,839 1,843 2,015 1,783 1,541 
			 Cumbria and Lancashire 1,018 1,055 1,084 908 856 792 
			 Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire 506 406 390 434 422 413 
			 Devon and Cornwall 1,044 793 614 548 522 417 
			 Dorset, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire 827 758 611 609 564 627 
			 Greater Manchester 862 745 720 722 503 374 
			 Hampshire and Isle of Wight 519 583 569 565 501 350 
			 Humber and South Yorkshire 1,075 1,047 1,098 1,051 919 707 
			 Kent 659 666 580 466 453 445 
			 Lincolnshire, Leicestershire and Rutland and Northamptonshire 511 579 568 571 534 321 
			 London Civil and Family 6,762 6,285 6,046 5,752 5,253 5,707 
			 Mid and West Wales 299 189 184 172 199 132 
			 North and West Yorkshire 1,823 1,779 1,757 1,958 1,814 1,987 
			 North Wales 333 264 261 140 125 133 
			 South East Wales 305 301 198 205 189 153 
			 Surrey and Sussex 983 813 882 796 635 655 
			 Thames Valley 944 834 828 747 600 573 
			 England and Wales 25,233 23,723 22,851 22,020 19,819 19,367 
		
	
	Area level figures are not available before 2003. However, the following table gives, for each year from 1998 to 2002, the most recently published national figures.
	
		
			  Non-molestation orders applied for, and made, in England and Wales between 1998 and 2002 
			   Applications made  Orders made 
			 1998 18,153 19,365 
			 1999 16,908 18,465 
			 2000 15,734 18,293 
			 2001 17,590 20,968 
			 2002 19,131 24,999

Open Prisons

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 2 December 2009,  Official Report, column 800W, on open prisons, how many prisoners convicted of murder are being held at each open prison.

Jack Straw: The following table gives the numbers of prisoners detained for murder at each open prison in England and Wales, as at 30 June 2009 the last date at which data are available:
	
		
			   Number 
			 Askham Grange 10 
			 Ford 25 
			 Hollesley Bay 20 
			 Kirkham 30 
			 Leyhill 50 
			 North Sea Camp 25 
			 Prescoed 15 
			 Spring Hill 15 
			 Standford Hill 10 
			 Sudbury 60 
			 Sutton Park 5 
			 Total 260 
		
	
	The total number of prisoners convicted of murder and in prison was around 4,900 at the end of June 2009. The figure in the open estate is therefore 5 per cent. of the total. There have been open prisons since 1936 and they are widely accepted as the most effective means of ensuring prisoners are tested in the community before they are released. To release prisoners directly from a closed prison without the resettlement benefits of the open estate would undoubtedly lead to higher levels of post-release reoffending.
	Prisoners are assessed objectively in a process looking at all aspects of their offending behaviour, actions they have taken to reduce their likelihood of reoffending and the risk they pose to the public. They are placed in the lowest security category consistent with their assessed risk. Only prisoners placed in the lowest security category (D) may be allocated to open conditions. If their behaviour becomes a cause for concern, they can be moved back to more secure conditions.
	Prisoners convicted of murderer serving life sentences and other indeterminate sentence prisoners will be transferred from closed to open prison conditions only following the acceptance of a Parole Board recommendation to the Secretary of State. Before making such a recommendation, the Parole Board must be satisfied that the case meets the criteria set out in the directions to the Parole Board under section 32(6) of the Criminal Justice Act 1991, of which the risk of abscond is a central factor.
	Transfer of any prisoner to open conditions will only take place if continued detention in closed conditions is no longer necessary for the protection of the public. Open conditions allow prisoners to find work, re-establish family ties and reintegrate into the community. All these are essential components for successful resettlement and an important factor in protecting the public.
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing. Totals for each prison have been rounded to the nearest five and the grand total to the nearest 10; separately rounded sub-totals may not add to the rounded total.

Prisoners: Ex-servicemen

David Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when his Department plans to produce statistics on the number of former servicemen and women who are currently either serving a custodial sentence or the subject of community supervision.

Maria Eagle: The Ministry of Defence's Defence Analytical Services and Advice has undertaken an exercise to match Ministry of Justice data on prisoners in England and Wales with the MoD database of service leavers to establish the numbers of armed forces veterans in custody. The analysis indicates that almost 3 per cent. of the prison population in England and Wales were former armed forces personnel. We are exploring the feasibility and cost of extending the data matching to encompass those subject to community supervision.

Prisons: Disciplinary Proceedings

Neil Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many investigations took place under Prison Service Order 1300 in each year since 2000; and what offences triggered such investigations.

Maria Eagle: Information on the number of formal investigations conducted under Prison Service Order 1300 in each year since 2000, and the categories (including disciplinary offences) of these investigations, is provided in the following table(1).
	HR processes including investigations have been centralised and are managed by the NOMS National Shared Service Centre (SSC). The former Investigation Support Section (ISS) started to transfer its role to the SSC in January 2008 on a region by region basis. This was completed by February 2009.
	During this time the business took the opportunity to review the categories under which investigations were recorded with a view to improving the data held. As such at the point of transfer to the SSC a number of new categories were created under which investigations could be registered. Therefore, any fluctuations shown in the table, particularly significant increases or decreases between 2008 and 2009, are a result of the creation of the new categories and improvements made by the business in the collation of such data from the NOMS estate. The overall trend relating to the total numbers of formally registered investigations has remained fairly consistent for at least six years.
	(1) This information is based on data extracted from a central investigations database and data provided by the National Offender Management Service-National Shared Service Centre (SSC) during December 2009.
	
		
			  Categories  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008  2009 
			 Absence from duty 9 40 41 73 63 54 39 60 65 4 
			 Abuse of sick leave 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 21 
			 Abusive language/behaviour towards prisoners 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 39 
			 Abusive language/behaviour towards staff 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 54 
			 Abusive language/behaviour towards the public/visitors 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 
			 Action or negligence which caused/contributed to the loss, damage or injury to the service/individual 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 26 150 
			 Allegations of a racist nature 24 77 57 90 84 71 73 80 69 4 
			 Allegations of a sectarian nature 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Allegations of a sexual/sexist nature 13 36 26 60 42 39 19 27 27 3 
			 Any other serious incident not covered above 30 122 55 81 6 4 0 0 1 0 
			 Assault (no prisoner involvement) 1 8 14 15 13 13 16 22 10 6 
			 Assault on staff 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 8 
			 Assault of the public/visitor 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 3 
			 Assault on prisoner 43 121 125 232 122 102 72 93 109 136 
			 Asleep on duty 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 9 
			 Attempted escape 1 9 5 12 9 13 5 9 6 0 
			 Attempted suicide/self harm 0 4 6 12 7 1 0 0 3 0 
			 Barricade or prevention of access 0 0 0 1 3 3 0 1 0 0 
			 Bomb threats or explosions 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 
			 Breach of flexible working hours procedures 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 
			 Breaches of security 10 47 58 115 123 97 109 157 187 173 
			 Bringing discredit on the Prison Service 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 8 
			 Circumstances surrounding a death in custody 30 60 69 126 83 6 1 2 4 0 
			 Concerted indiscipline by prisoners 1 5 8 15 9 8 2 4 3 1 
			 Corruption 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 
			 Death of a prisoner from natural causes or death of any other person 5 23 39 35 39 8 2 1 0 0 
			 Deliberate and very serious damage to prison property 0 0 1 4 2 2 0 5 2 0 
			 Discovery or presence of a firearm, ammunition or CS spray 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 
			 Duplicate 0 0 0 60 10 22 23 13 5 0 
			 Escape from a closed establishment 4 12 17 16 12 7 6 3 3 0 
			 Escape from an escort 5 7 8 18 11 8 5 9 3 0 
			 Exploitation of working relationship 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 
			 Failure to obey lawful and reasonable order or written instruction 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 39 
			 Failure to report misconduct of others 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 
			 Financial affairs 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 7 
			 Fraud 12 17 12 46 49 28 37 26 42 0 
			 Harassment-staff 16 64 57 101 111 61 47 49 85 117 
			 Hostage 0 9 7 7 3 5 2 4 1 0 
			 Inappropriate behaviour between staff 0 2 21 84 62 112 87 104 136 6 
			 Inappropriate relationships 13 26 35 77 60 63 66 56 44 52 
			 Inappropriate relationships with a prison visitor/relative of a prisoner 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 
			 Inappropriate treatment of prisoners 5 2 28 84 118 66 70 108 124 7 
			 Investigation suspended/void 5 61 97 89 41 116 116 135 112 1 
			 Key or lock compromise 15 47 49 87 71 62 74 78 85 2 
			 Making/prompting false statements 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 14 
			 Membership of a racist organisation 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 5 
			 Misuse of Information Technology 0 1 2 8 35 35 19 39 49 68 
			 Negligence likely to endanger the security of the establishment/escape of a prisoner 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 22 148 
			 Non/poor performance of duties 0 2 23 100 128 232 202 155 114 6 
			 Police caution 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 15 37 
			 Poor time keeping 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 
			 Racial harassment 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 50 
			 Refusing an order 0 2 9 20 36 17 23 28 20 1 
			 Release in error 1 8 10 21 16 17 11 12 9 0 
			 Roof climbing 0 0 3 10 3 5 1 4 1 0 
			 Serious allegations against senior staff member 3 14 1 5 2 4 0 2 8 0 
			 Sexual harassment/assault 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 6 25 
			 Significant drug find (not positive MDT result) 0 1 1 0 1 1 3 2 1 0 
			 Staff on criminal charges not covered above 4 21 14 60 50 51 51 73 84 63 
			 Theft 4 9 22 46 37 22 30 11 34 49 
			 Trafficking 3 5 11 6- 13 20 28 36 17 15 
			 Unauthorised absence (AWOL) or lateness 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 57 
			 Unauthorised disclosure of non-protectively marked information to a 3rd party in breach of professional confidentiality 3 15 3 5 7 3 13 2 2 0 
			 Unauthorised disclosure of protectively marked information to a third party 2 0 0 10 7 5 5 16 14 17 
			 Unauthorised secondary employment 0 1 5 6 15 16 0 7 6 13 
			 Unfit for duty 0 5 7 12 12 2 10 20 2 1 
			 Unprofessional conduct 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 37 202 
			 Total 262 883 948 1,850 1,516 1,401 1,267 1,455 1,642 1,638 
			  Notes: 1. Information has been collated according to the calendar year 1 January through 31 December. 2. Since 1 April 2004 the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) registers, investigates and produces reports about all deaths in prison custody. 3. A number of new 'categories' were created by the SSC during 2008-09 and account for the nil returns in a number of categories between 2000-07.

Rendition

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will now respond to the proposals put forward by the hon. Member for Chichester for draft legislation on extraordinary rendition.

Jack Straw: I wrote to the hon. Member for Chichester (Mr. Tyrie) on 14 December in response to proposals contained in a consultation paper by the all party parliamentary group to tighten the criminal law with respect to the practice of extraordinary rendition. I said then that I had asked officials across Government to study the consultation paper carefully, and added that it would be helpful to see any responses to the consultation as we can feed those into that work. I have today placed a copy of my letter of 14 December in the Libraries of both Houses.

Reoffenders: Young People

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 5 January 2010,  Official Report, column 48W, on young offender institutes, how many re-offences were committed by young people released from custody in each year since 2000.

Maria Eagle: Juvenile reoffending covers those aged 10 to 17. A release from custody could be from a Secure Training Centre, a Secure Children's Home or a Young Offender Institution. It is not possible to separate out the figures for the different kinds of establishments.
	Table 1 presents the juvenile custody reoffending rates from 2000-07. The frequency rate (number of offences per 100 offenders) is based on the actual number of offences the cohort committed during the one-year follow up period which resulted in a conviction at court or caution. The actual proven one-year frequency reoffending rate is produced by calculating the number of proven reoffences per 100 offenders.
	
		
			  Table 1: One year reoffending rates for offenders aged under 18 discharged from custody, 2000, 2002-07 
			  Cohort  Number of offenders  Number of offences per 100 offenders 
			 2000 Q1 912 482.1 
			 2002 Q1 959 465.9 
			 2003 Q1 786 442.5 
			 2004 Q1 815 414.8 
			 2005 Q1 844 409.5 
			 2006 Q1 817 404.0 
			 2007 Q1 778 359.0 
		
	
	Please note that reoffending data are not available for 2001 due to a problem with archived data on court orders. Since it will not substantially increase the knowledge on the current-progress on reoffending, no resources have been allocated to fix this problem.
	For information on the latest juvenile re-offending statistics please consult:
	http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/docs/reoffending-iuveniles-2007.pdf

Road Safety Act 2006

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many people have been  (a) arrested for,  (b) charged with and  (c) convicted of causing death by careless driving under the Road Safety Act 2006 in each year since the Act came into force;
	(2)  how many people have been  (a) arrested for,  (b) charged with and  (c) convicted of causing death by dangerous driving in each of the last five years.

Maria Eagle: The Home Office collect data on arrests for recorded crime (notifiable offences) broken down at a main offence group level only, covering categories such as violence against the person and robbery. Due to the way the data are collected and held, it is not possible separately to identify the number of arrests made for death by careless or dangerous driving.
	The Road Safety Act 2006 came into force on 18 August 2008. Court proceedings data for 2008 are planned for publication on 28 January 2010.
	Information showing the number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts and found guilty at all courts for causing death by dangerous driving in England and Wales from 2003 to 2007 (latest available) can be viewed in the following table.
	The Ministry of Justice do not collect charging data, proceeded against data have been provided in lieu.
	
		
			  Defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts and found guilty at all courts for causing death by dangerous driving( 1) , England and Wales, 2003 - 07( 2, 3) 
			  Number 
			   Proceeded against  Found guilty 
			 2003 299 233 
			 2004 287 241 
			 2005 273 255 
			 2006 269 223 
			 2007 276 233 
			 (1) Under Section 1 of the 1988 Road Traffic Act as added by section 1 of the 1991 Road Traffic Act.  (2) The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.  (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.   Source:  Justice Statistics Analytical Services-Ministry of Justice.

Shoplifting: Sentencing

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent representation he has received on sentencing policy for people convicted of offences of theft from shops.

Jack Straw: We have received no recent representations on sentencing policy for people convicted of offences of theft from shops. In December 2008, following full public consultation, the independent Sentencing Guidelines Council issued definitive guidelines on theft and burglary in a building other than a dwelling.

Young Offenders: Community Orders

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of young offenders given a community sentence have  (a) breached that order and  (b) received a custodial sentence as a result in each month of the last three years.

Maria Eagle: Data on breaches of community sentences by under-18s is not available centrally and will not be published until improvements have been made to the submissions of this data to the Ministry of Justice. Therefore it is not possible to provide the proportion of young offenders who receive a custodial sentence for breaching a community sentence.
	Published data shows that there were 2,139 receptions of offenders aged 15 to 24 into prison establishments in England and Wales in 2008 as a result of community sentence breaches.
	This information can be found in 6.12 of Offender Management Caseload Statistics 2008, a copy of which has been placed in the House of Commons Library and which can also be found at the following website:
	http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/prisonandprobation.htm
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.

Youth Custody

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many accommodation units there are in each  (a) secure children's home,  (b) secure training centre and  (c) young offender institution; how many young offenders each unit accommodates; and how many staff work in each unit.

Maria Eagle: The following tables show the number of accommodation units at each secure children's home (SCH), secure training centre (STC) and young offender institution (YOI), the capacity of each establishment and the total staff numbers in each establishment.
	Most SCHs which accommodate young people sentenced or remanded by the courts also accept young people in the care of a local authority who are placed there on welfare grounds. As the two groups of young people are accommodated together, in the same units, the table shows the total capacity for homes and total staffing numbers. SCHs which accommodate only young people placed on welfare grounds are not included.
	It is not possible to provide separate staffing figures for under-18 YOIs or to disaggregate figures for units sited with over-21 establishments. The table shows data for all establishments that accommodate 15-17 year olds or 18-20 year olds, either on separate sites or co-located on split sites.
	The data has been supplied by the Youth Justice Board and the National Offender Management Service and have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large-scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing and may be subject to change over time.
	
		
			  Secure Children's Homes 
			   Number of units  Total capacity of establishment (inc. welfare places)  Total number of staff at establishment 
			 Aldine House 1 8 21 
			 Aycliffe 4 38 135 
			 Barton Moss 3 20 85 
			 Clayfields 3 18 55 
			 East Moor 3 36 115 
			 Hillside 3 18 83 
			 Lincolnshire 1 9 49 
			 Red Bank 3 29 130 
			 Swanwick 2 16 43 
			 Vinney Green 2 24 86 
			  Note: The data for this table have been provided by the YJB. 
		
	
	
		
			  Secure Training Centres 
			   Number of units  Total capacity of establishment  Total number of staff at establishment 
			 Rainsbrook 13 87 255 
			 Medway 16 76 275 
			 Oakhill 8 80 245 
			 Hassockfield 7 52 180 
			  Note:  The data for this table have been provided by the YJB 
		
	
	
		
			  Young Offender Institutions 
			   Category( 1)  Number of units  Total capacity of establishment (inc. all 15-20 year old places)  Total number of staff at establishment( 1,2) 
			 Ashfield (contracted) YP 7 357 439 
			 Aylesbury YO 7 422 308 
			 Brinsford Y07YP 9 544 403 
			 Castington Y07YP 7 408 385 
			 Cookham Wood YP 3 108 228 
			 Deerbolt YO 9 513 352 
			 Feltham YO/YP 16 662 740 
			 Glen Parva YO 10 808 473 
			 Hindley YP 5 390 447 
			 Huntercombe YP 5 365 285 
			 Lancaster Farms YO 4 530 395 
			 Northallerton YO 2 251 136 
			 Portland YO 8 555 392 
			 Reading YO 4 253 189 
			 Rochester YO 8 724 463 
			 Stoke Heath YO/YP 7 692 445 
			 Swinfen Hall YO 9 654 398 
			 Thorn Cross YO 6 310 206 
			 Warren Hill YP 5 214 242 
			 Werrington YP 3 162 177 
			 Wetherby YP 7 408 370 
			 (1) YO = Young offender establishment (18-20 year-olds), YP = Young people establishment (15-17 year-olds) (2) Headcount (part-time staff count as one)  Note:  The data in this table have been provided by NOMS.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Broadband

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the average speed of broadband services available in rural areas.

Stephen Timms: This Department has not made an estimate of the average speed of broadband services available in rural areas. However, Ofcom's UK Broadband Speeds 2009 report (published July 2009) indicated that the average download speed in rural areas was 3.3 Mbps.

Broadband: Wales

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much funding from  (a) the public purse and  (b) the European Union budget will be provided under the new fund announced by the Secretary of State to install the next generation of fibre optic cable broadband in Wales in each financial year up to 2016-17.

Stephen Timms: We expect the proposed landline duty to provide £150 million to £175 million per year to support investment in next generation broadband infrastructure, until 2017. The distribution of funds to support investment in particular areas is yet to be determined. No European funds have been allocated to this programme.

Business: Bexley

David Evennett: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many businesses in the London Borough of Bexley have received a health check from Business Link.

Rosie Winterton: 90 businesses in the London borough of Bexley have received a health check from Business Link in London from November 2008 to November 2009.

Business: Leeds

John Battle: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many small businesses in  (a) Leeds and  (b) Leeds, West constituency have applied for financial assistance under the (i) Enterprise Finance Guarantee scheme and (ii) Capital Enterprise scheme since their inception; and how many such applications were granted.

Rosie Winterton: As of 9 December, 79 small businesses within Leeds have been offered loans under the Enterprise Finance Guarantee totalling £8.6 million. Within the constituency of Leeds, West seven businesses have been offered loans totalling £0.43 million.
	Businesses may apply for a loan from any one of the participating lenders who will assess which form of lending, including the Enterprise Finance Guarantee, is most appropriate. We do not hold figures for those businesses which are instead offered a normal commercial loan, or are rejected for failing to meet the lender's commercial criteria.
	As of 9 December, with respect to the £75 million Capital for Enterprise Fund equity scheme, the appointed fund managers have so far made offers totalling £73.2 million to 47 businesses. 11 businesses have accepted the terms of the funding offered with a total value of £17.0 million. 12 businesses have received investment totalling £17.7 million, including two in the Yorkshire and Humber region. I am not providing a breakdown by parliamentary constituency or local authority as this could make it possible to identify the individual companies that have received support.

Caparo Group

Graham Stuart: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills with which companies of the Caparo Group his Department holds contracts.

Patrick McFadden: Central BIS records indicate that the Department holds no contracts with Caparo Group companies.
	An element of historic former-DIUS financial records are maintained by DCSF who advise that contract details are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Surveys

Grant Shapps: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will place in the Library a copy of the results of his Department's most recent staff survey; which organisation carried out the survey; and what the cost of the survey was.

Patrick McFadden: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, BIS, will be publishing its October 2009 staff survey results on the BIS website in February 2010. Following publication we will place a copy of the results in the Libraries of the House.
	The supplier for the BIS staff survey in October 2009 was ORC International who were procured by the Cabinet Office to deliver the first cross-Civil Service People Survey. The People Survey replaced all existing staff surveys in the civil service with a single questionnaire.
	The cost of the 2009-10 People Survey for BIS was £37,000 excluding VAT. By procuring a single supplier for staff surveys in 2009-10 the civil service has saved 35 per cent. on the total cost of staff surveys in 2008-09.

Departmental Taxis

Grant Shapps: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much his Department spent on taxi fares in each of the last five years.

Patrick McFadden: Following a machinery of Government change the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills was formed in June 2009. The following figures relate to the Departments before the merger, including the former Department of Trade and Industry.
	
		
			   £ 
			 2004-05 342,928 
			 2005-06 386,443 
			 2006-07 349,075 
			 2007-08 329,842 
			 2008-09 411,471 
		
	
	Figures include spend for both UK and Overseas taxi fares.
	All travel is undertaken in accordance with the Ministerial Code and Civil Service Management Code. All staff must ensure they use the most efficient and economic means of travel.

Electric Cables

David Anderson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will bring forward proposals for regulations with the aim of protecting the public from risks associated with the installation of  (a) dangerous and  (b) sub-standard electrical cables.

Ian Lucas: Electrical cables are currently regulated for the purposes of safety by European legislation. The Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations make it an offence to supply unsafe electrical equipment such as electrical cables. The Regulations are enforced by the Health and Safety Executive with regard to products supplied exclusively to business (e.g. for professional installation in business and domestic environments) and by Trading Standards for products where the supply is to consumers.
	Installation is regulated for domestic situations by Communities and Local Government Building Regulations and for non-domestic situations by the HSE Electricity At Work Regulations.

Employment: Vetting

Nigel Evans: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Health on the use of pre-employment health-related questions for job candidates which are not directly relevant to candidates' ability to do the job.

Patrick McFadden: I have had no such discussions with the Secretary of State for Health. The use of pre-employment inquiries about health or disability is a matter for the Office for Disability Issues. Provision has been made in the Equality Bill, currently before Parliament, to ensure that pre-employment inquiries about health or disability are used appropriately.

Financial Services: Leeds

John Battle: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what his most recent assessment is of the effect on the financial services industry in Leeds of the recession; and if he will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: I am a member of the Financial Services Task Force set up by Yorkshire Forward in October 2008 to co-ordinate partners response to the recession. Its remit includes support for people facing redundancy to help them find new jobs quickly. The partners are also working on a longer term strategy to maintain Leeds and its wider city region as a UK centre of excellence for financial and professional services.
	The Task Force published a report by Deloitte in March 2009 on the Future of the Financial Services Industry (FSI) in the Leeds City Region. This highlighted Leeds City Region as home to the largest FSI hub outside London, employing over 240,000 people.
	The Deloitte report had a range of scenarios on the potential impact of the recession on FSI activity in Leeds and its wider City Region. Its best case scenario forecast up to 22,500 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs lost and a loss of annual output of £1.77 billion.
	In December 2009 Yorkshire Forward completed a region wide assessment of the impact of recession. This suggests the loss of financial services output in the region could be around £820 million-less than half the best case scenario put forward in the Deloitte report. The potential jobs lost in financial services in Leeds is expected to be in the range between 12,000 and 14,000.
	This recent assessment by Yorkshire Forward reinforces anecdotal views that the likely impact of the recession on financial services industry in Leeds will be less than had been expected. It is therefore clear that the financial services industry in the Leeds City Region has fared better than predicted at the start of the global recession. The sector has proved resilient through the downturn and over the longer term it is expected to continue to lead the growth of the regional economy.
	I will continue to work closely with partners on the Financial Services Task Force on the longer term strategy to develop and maintain the Leeds City Region as a UK centre of excellence for financial and professional services.

Flexible Working

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many requests for flexible working from  (a) mothers and  (b) fathers were accepted by employers in each year since 2003; and how many such requests from carers have been accepted by employers in each year since 2007.

Patrick McFadden: The new employment rights introduced in April 2003 gave parents of children under six and disabled children under 18 the right to request flexible working, this was extended to carers in April 2007 and parents of children aged 16 and under in April 2009. There are no requirements for either employers or employees to notify the Department when requests are made to work flexibly. The Department does not have the requested information for each year since 2003 and does not have evidence on the number of requests accepted or rejected by carers since 2007.
	However, the Department conducts periodic sample surveys to estimate the proportions of employees making requests to change their regular working hours and the proportion of such requests accepted or rejected. The most recent employee survey ('Third Work Life Balance Employees' Survey') was conducted in 2006, before the implementation of the extension of the right to request to carers. The following table presents the findings from the 2006 survey.
	
		
			  Request made to employer to change how they work at some point over previous two years, employees: Outcome of request by gender, parental status and adult caring responsibilities 
			  Percentage 
			   Request made to change how regularly worked during the previous two years( 1)  Requests accepted by employer( 2)  (fully and partially)  Request declined by employer( 3) 
			  All employees 17 78 17 
			 Male 14 71 23 
			 Female 22 83 13 
			 
			  Parental status( 4)  (employees)
			 Dependent children 20 80 17 
			 Males with dependent children 12 70 30 
			 Females with dependent children 27 84 12 
			 No dependent children 17 77 17 
			 
			  Adult carers( 5)  (employees)
			 Yes 26 79 11 
			 No 17 78 18 
			 (1) 'Q (Over the last two years), have you approached your current employer to make a request to change how you regularly work for a sustained period of time?' (2) 'Q. Was your request to change the way you regularly work agreed to?' (3) Not all requests had an outcome by the time of the survey. (4) Parental status is defined in the survey as having dependent children aged 18 or less. (5) Adult carers are defined as people who look after adults who are sick, disabled or elderly, whether they live with the carer or not.  Notes: 1. Employees with parental responsibilities (defined as having dependent children aged under 19). In 2006, 22 per cent. of working parents had made a request to change their regular working pattern during the previous two years, and 80 per cent. of requests had been accepted. 27 per cent. of 'working mothers' had made requests, with 84 per cent. of requests being accepted, compared with 12 per cent. and 70 per cent. respectively for 'working fathers'. 2. Employees with adult caring responsibilities (defined as looking after sick, disabled or elderly adults). In 2006, 26 per cent. of employees with adult caring responsibilities had made a request to change their working pattern, with 79 per cent. of requests accepted (11 per cent. rejected).  Source: Third Work-Life Balance Survey 2006. (2,081 employees across Great Britain

Furniture: Foam

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what his Department's policy is on the pricing of foam for use in home furnishings.

Ian Lucas: The pricing of foam is a matter for the market.

KBR

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether his Department has entered into any contracts with Kellogg, Brown and Root or its subsidiaries since January 2009.

Patrick McFadden: Central records indicate that the former-BERR element of the Department has entered into no contracts with Kellogg, Brown and Root or its subsidiaries since January 2009.
	Procurement services to the former-DIUS element of the Department are provided by DCSF who advise that the information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Lord Sugar

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 9 December 2009,  Official Report, column 513W, on Lord Sugar, on what dates Lord Sugar visited his Department; and what small business representatives he has met since his appointment.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 15 December 2009
	Lord Sugar is an advisor to Government and small business and does not have a Department. Between the dates previously indicated he visited the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills on 11 June, 8, 13 and 20 July, 6 August, 1, 17, 24 and 29 September, 1, 12, 13 and 22 October and 4, 17, 18, 23 and 30 November.
	He has talked to almost 2,000 businesses at various question and answer sessions around the country. He has also had one-to-one meetings with over 20 businesses, most of whom were participating in a Business Link Health Check. The practice of Business Link is not to disclose details of those using its services, without client permission, in order to protect the commercial interests of the businesses concerned.

Middlesex University: Per Capita Costs

Joan Ryan: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what average per-student teaching grant was received by Middlesex University in each year since 1997.

David Lammy: The following table shows the average amount of teaching grant per student that the Higher Education Funding Council for England has provided to Middlesex from 1996/97 to 2009/10. These annual figures cannot be directly compared, as a result of various changes to the funding method over this period.
	
		
			  Average teaching grant rates of funding per FTE for Middlesex University 
			   Rate (£) 
			 1996-97 1,923 
			 1997-98 2,048 
			 1998-99 2,501 
			 1999-2000 2,580 
			 2000-01 2,610 
			 2001-02 2,729 
			 2002-03 2,978 
			 2003-04 3,419 
			 2004-05 3,842 
			 2005-06 3,977 
			 2006-07 4,167 
			 2007-08 4,192 
			 2008-09 4,473 
			 2009-10 4,502 
			  Source: Total recurrent teaching grants from the following HEFCE publications: Recurrent Grants for the Academic Year 1996-97: Final Allocations Recurrent Grants for the Academic Year 1997-98: Final Allocations Recurrent Grants for 1998-99: Final Allocations Recurrent Grants for 1999-2000: Final Allocations Recurrent Grants for 2000-01: Final Allocations Recurrent Grants for 2001-02: Final Allocations Recurrent Grants for 2002-03: Final Allocations Recurrent Grants for 2003-04: Final Allocations Recurrent Grants for 2004-05: Final Allocations Recurrent Grants for 2005-06: Final Allocations Recurrent Grants for 2006-07: Final Allocations Recurrent Grants for 2007-08: Final Allocations Recurrent Grants for 2008-09: Final Allocations

Partnerships: Company accounts

John Pugh: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether his Department plans to amend the provisions of the Partnerships (Accounts) Regulations 2008 to require partnerships with a limited liability partnership as a notional partner to publish their accounts.

Ian Lucas: UK law does not recognise the concept of a notional partner. It does however recognise the concept of a general partner, under the Limited Partnerships Act 1907.
	The purpose of the Partnerships (Accounts) Regulations 2008-like their predecessor regulations the Partnerships and Unlimited Companies (Accounts) Regulations 1993-is to implement European company law Directive 90/605/EEC. The directive amended the Fourth EU company law directive, which requires limited companies to draw up and publish accounts. The 1990 directive does not extend to limited partnerships whose general partners are Limited Liability Partnerships and the Department has no plans to amend the law to do so and thereby increase the burdens on business. Anyone wishing to do business with a limited partnership structured in this way can of course ask for copies of its financial statements as a precondition.

Work Experience: Young People

David Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what information his Department holds on the number of young people who have started  (a) a paid and  (b) an unpaid internship in each of the last 12 months.

David Lammy: There is a huge range of internships available to young people, only some of which are stimulated by Government. We hold some information about vacancies filled through the Graduate Talent Pool. I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 11 January 2010,  Official Report, column reference 807W for this information.

TREASURY

Debts: Developing Countries

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when his Department plans to announce the conclusions of its July 2009 consultation on Ensuring effective debt relief for poor countries; what plans he has to introduce legislative proposals to tackle vulture funds; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Pearson: The Treasury intends to publish the results of its consultation Ensuring Effective Debt Relief for Poor Countries in February. The Government do not consider it acceptable that a minority of creditors continue to pursue full repayment for debts that the international community has worked so hard to reduce. It calls on all creditors to provide their share of debt relief to Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPCs). In that regard, I fully support the decision by the hon. Member for Denton and Reddish (Andrew Gwynne) to use a Private Member's Bill to tackle so-called vulture funds, helping to ensure that the world's poor see the full benefits of debt relief.

Departmental Advertising

Grant Shapps: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what advertising campaigns his Department has been responsible in each of the last three years; which such campaigns have  (a) commenced and  (b) continued in 2009-10 to date; and what the total cost of each such campaign has been.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: For details of spending on advertising I refer the hon. Member to the following previous answers:
	The answer I gave on 5 November 2009,  Official Report, column 1093W, to the hon. Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr. Hammond).
	The answer given by the former Exchequer Secretary (Angela Eagle) on 26 November 2008,  Official Report, column 1891W, to the hon. Member for Taunton (Mr. Browne).
	The answer given by the then Financial Secretary (John Healey) on 25 June 2007,  Official Report, column 376W.
	The majority of the Department's advertising is usually on staff recruitment except where indicated in the previous answers referred to above. Advertising spending on staff recruitment and the Money Guidance pathfinder advertising will continue in 2009-10. Details of any other campaigns launched in 2009-10 and total spending on advertising in that year will be available when the Department's Resource Account is published.

Departmental Domestic Visits

Philip Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many planned visits by Ministers in his Department within the UK were cancelled within 72 hours of the visit taking place in the last 12 months; and what the planned venue or venues were for each such visit.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Waste

Grant Shapps: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what volume of waste his Department generated in each of the last three years; what percentage of this was  (a) paper,  (b) plastic,  (c) glass,  (d) metal,  (e) electrical goods and batteries and  (f) food waste; and what percentage of his Department's waste was (i) disposed of securely, (ii) disposed of in landfill and (iii) recycled.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: HM Treasury is committed to making operations as sustainable as possible. Detailed information on waste and recycling in Treasury buildings is published in HM Treasury's Annual Report and Accounts 2008-09 (HC 611).
	The recycled paper waste in that report includes all of the Department's documents that are disposed of securely. The following table gives the proportions, where available, of the total waste by weight report which relate to batteries, all of which are recycled.
	
		
			  HM Treasury battery disposals, 2006-07 to 2008-09 
			  Tonnes 
			   1 Horse Guards Road  Rosebery Court 
			 2006-07 0.1580 - 
			 2007-08 0 - 
			 2008-09 0.3295 0.006 
		
	
	In the years reported, all disposals of HM Treasury's IT equipment were recycled under a service contract with an external organisation.
	The remaining information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Public Sector: Procurement

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what guidance his Department provides to  (a) other Government departments and  (b) non-governmental organisations on the implementation of Article 45 of the 2004/EC/18 European Directive on Public Procurement.

Ian Pearson: The Office of Government Commerce has issued a guidance note on the implementation of Article 45. It can be accessed on their website at:
	www.ogc.gov.uk

Taxation: Business

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will exempt businesses with a turnover of less than £100,000 per annum that do not have access to the internet from the requirement from April 2010 to submit value-added tax returns online.

Stephen Timms: Businesses already registered for VAT as at 1 April 2010 with a turnover of less than £100,000 (excluding VAT) may still file their VAT return on paper.
	All businesses registering for VAT after 1 April 2010 will be required to file their VAT returns online.
	HM Revenue and Customs have in place a full range of options for those businesses needing support through this change, including the very small minority with no direct internet access.

Taxation: Holiday Accommodation

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the evidential basis is for the statement in his Department's document, Impact Assessment of Withdrawing the Furnished Holiday Letting Rules, that it is likely that an indefinite extension of the FHL rules to EEA properties would also negatively impact upon UK tourism; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: Extending the furnished holiday letting rules to properties in the European economic area indefinitely would eliminate the UK tax advantage for UK properties relative to other European properties. It would encourage investment abroad and channel UK resources to businesses that promote tourism elsewhere in Europe, seeking to attract tourists away from the UK.
	The Government support the objective of a thriving UK tourism industry, and are providing £130 million between 2008 and 2012 for marketing Britain overseas and England to the British. In addition, between £3.3 and £3.5 million is provided annually to the regional development agencies for tourism support.

Welfare Tax Credits

John Battle: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how many  (a) telephone calls were made and  (b) letters were sent by the Tax Credit Office to (i) Jobcentre Plus, (ii) the Home Office, (iii) the Child Benefit Office and (iv) local authorities in (A) 2005-06, (B) 2006-07, (C) 2007-08 and (D) 2008-09;
	(2)  how many  (a) telephone calls were made and  (b) letters were sent by the Child Benefit Office to (i) Jobcentre Plus, (ii) the Home Office, (iii) the Tax Credit Office and (iv) local authorities in (A) 2005-06, (B) 2006-07, (C) 2007-08 and (D) 2008-09.

Stephen Timms: The information requested is not available, as HM Revenue and Customs' (HMRC) telephony systems do not collate the number of outgoing calls made.
	For information about the overall number of items of correspondence issued by the then tax credit and child benefit offices in 2006-07; 2007-08 and 2008-09, is provided in the following table. Information is not available for 2005-06. HMRC does not keep an itemised log of the number of items of correspondence addressed to other local and national Government departments or agencies.
	
		
			  m illion 
			   Correspondence sent by : 
			   Tax Credit Office  Child Benefit Office 
			 2006-07 1.35 3.37 
			 2007-08 1.31 3.51 
			 2008-09 2.16 3.46 
			  Note: Figures do not include items of post generated automatically by the tax credits and child benefit computer systems.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Afghanistan: Embassies

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the annual entertainment budget is of the British Embassy in Kabul in 2009-10.

Ivan Lewis: Our embassy in Kabul has budgeted £58,493 (representing 0.3 per cent. of its budget) for the current financial year for hosting official contacts. These include working meetings with Senior North Atlantic Treaty Organisation/International Security Assistance Force personnel, with Kabul-based ambassadors, with senior Afghan political leaders, as well as hosting visiting hon. Members. These events are about supporting and furthering the UK's objectives in Afghanistan. Expenditure is monitored by budget holders, subject to audit and incurred in accordance with the principles of Managing Public Money and the Treasury handbook on Regularity and Propriety.

Departmental Flags

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many  (a) Union flags,  (b) other national flags and  (c) EU flags have been purchased by his Department in each of the last five years.

Chris Bryant: holding answer 11 January 2010
	 This information is not held centrally and is available only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Flags

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many  (a) Union flags,  (b) other national flags and  (c) EU flags his Department has.

Chris Bryant: This information is not held centrally and is available only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Internet

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much has been spent on  (a) strategy and planning,  (b) design and build,  (c) hosting and infrastructure,  (d) content provision and  (e) testing and evaluation for his Department's website in each of the last three years; and what budget has been allocated for each such activity in 2009-10.

Chris Bryant: The scope of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's (FCO) web presence has evolved significantly over the last three years. We have moved from a web platform hosting a number of embassy websites (2003-08) to a completely new web platform hosting all of the FCO's websites plus FCO blogs and campaign sites like:
	www.londonsummit.gov.uk
	www.actoncopenhagen.gov.uk
	and
	www.hmg.gov.uk/afghanistan
	(2008 onwards).
	Because of the significant changes in our web presence we do not have full and comparable data for the last three years.
	The data we provide relates to the entire FCO web platform, not just to our main UK site:
	www.fco.gov.uk
	The FCO web platform hosts over 250 websites in 40 languages. These websites include the main FCO website, Arabic and Urdu versions of the FCO website, the UKvisas website, the FCO Freedom of Information website, and over 230 embassy, high commission and special mission sites.
	These sites are viewed by 35 million visitors a year (2008-09 statistics).
	 (a) strategy and planning and (b) design and build :
	The FCO Web project (2006-08) was about planning, designing, building, hosting and servicing a single technical platform for all the FCO websites. The project also delivered new designs, content, functionality and a new hub and spoke model for delivering business support.
	The initial cost of £9.7 million for the FCO web platform was set out in the answer given by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, on 30 January 2008,  Official Report, column 398W.
	The project followed the Office of Government Commerce Gateway Review process and delivered on time and under budget. The total cost of the project (from 2006 to 2008) was £9.3 million, £400,000 under budget. This included, for these years, procurement costs, client side advice, all design and development for the 250 websites, a new content management system implementation, hosting and licensing costs. In addition, it covered a number of additional costs, including costs for training of over 300 delegates worldwide, project management, strategy consultation, user testing, accessibility testing, and establishment of regional hubs (London, New Delhi, Singapore and Washington DC) to provide business support and training.
	Logica sub-contracted elements of the project out (e.g. to XM for design, to Alterian for the CMS, to Verizon for hosting). The amount Logica paid XM for the design work is commercially protected and not known to the FCO.
	 (c) hosting and infrastructure :
	The following figures include support costs, as well as hosting and infrastructure costs. The most recent figures also include development costs. Because of the single contract with Logica to provide all these services, it is not possible to separate out the different cost elements. These costs are in addition to the one-off project cost set out above.
	2006-07-support and hosting costs: c.£500,000 (development costs unknown)
	2007-08-support and hosting costs: c.£515,000 (development costs unknown)
	2008-09-support, hosting and development costs: £1.45 million
	2009-10-projected support, hosting and development costs: £1.45 million
	 (d) content provision and (e) testing and evaluation :
	We provide all content, and undertake all testing and evaluation in-house. Work that we do in-house (including testing, and content updates and changes, for example) is carried out on a daily basis by hundreds of staff across the organisation. It is not feasible for us to be able to calculate the total time spent on this work.

Departmental Pay

Lee Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much has been paid in bonuses to civil servants in his Department in each year since 2006.

Chris Bryant: Payment of non-consolidated, variable pay linked to performance was introduced in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 2002. We reward staff who are performing most effectively, frequently in dangerous and difficult posts.
	For the total sums paid as non-consolidated, variable pay linked to performance in 2006-07, I refer the hon. Member to the reply by my right hon. Friend the Member for Eastwood (Mr. Murphy) to the hon. Member for Upper Bann (David Simpson) on 5 July 2007,  Official Report, column 1142W
	For 2007-08 the total paid was £6,748,152 and for 2008-09 the total paid was £7,571,836.

Departmental Pay

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many  (a) year-end and  (b) in-year bonuses were paid to officials in his Department in each of the last three years; and how much was paid in such bonuses in each such year.

Chris Bryant: For the number of year-end and in-year non-consolidated, variable payments linked to performance for the years 2006-07, 2007-08 and 2008-09 I refer the hon. Member to PQ 303951.

Departmental Trade Unions

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he last met trade union officials to discuss employment issues affecting his Department's staff.

Chris Bryant: Ministers meet many individuals during the course of their duties. It is not normal practice to disclose details of such meetings.

Diplomatic Service

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many consular staff his Department employees in each of its missions in Australasia.

Chris Bryant: The number of full-time equivalent (FTE) staff carrying out consular activities in Australasia (defined in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) as Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea) is 66.86.
	The following table provides the details by post within Australasia.
	
		
			  Post name  Consular FTE 
			  Australia  
			 Brisbane 2.43 
			 Canberra 19.63 
			 Melbourne 2.27 
			 Perth 2.91 
			 Sydney 3.17 
			   
			  New Zealand  
			 Auckland 0.33 
			 Wellington 35.46 
			   
			  Papua New Guinea  
			 Port Moresby 0.67 
		
	
	Some definitions of Australasia include the neighbouring Pacific Islands. Within this area the FCO has the following staff conducting consular work in Fiji and the Solomon Islands.
	
		
			   Consular FTE 
			  Fiji  
			 Suva 0.59 
			   
			  Solomon Islands  
			 Honiara 0.55

Government Hospitality: Wines

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 5 January 2010,  Official Report, column 197W, on Government hospitality: wines, how many bottles of wine were  (a) newly purchased for and  (b) used from the Government wine cellar in the last 12 months.

Chris Bryant: holding answer 11 January 2010
	In the financial year 2008-09 (latest available figures) Government hospitality used 5,632 bottles of wine from its cellar stock and purchased 4,596 bottles of wine.

Kashmir

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department is taking to support a bilateral resolution between India and Pakistan on the situation in Kashmir.

Ivan Lewis: It is not for the UK to prescribe a solution on Kashmir; that is for those parties directly involved to determine through dialogue. However, we continue to encourage both India and Pakistan to seek a lasting resolution to the issue of Kashmir, which takes into account the wishes of the Kashmiri people.
	More generally, we recognise that the normalisation of relations between India and Pakistan will be vital for improving regional security and resolving conflict. Through our engagement we continue to encourage both India and Pakistan to establish and maintain dialogue.

Morocco

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received on the compliance with international law of UK companies which buy goods from Moroccan-occupied Western Sahara.

Chris Bryant: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has not received any representations on the compliance with international law of UK companies which buy goods from the disputed territory of Western Sahara.

Nigeria: Foreign Relations

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what aims and objectives he has set for UK foreign policy in respect of Nigeria.

Ivan Lewis: Nigeria is an important partner for the UK, and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) engages with the country across all of our Departmental Strategic Objectives. I was able to discuss our objectives with a broad range of senior Nigerians, including President Yar'Adua, during my visit to Nigeria in November last year.
	Conflict in the Niger Delta and inter-religious conflict in the North continue to be a priority, and the FCO works together with the Department for International Development and other Partners Across Government to address the underlying causes, including by reducing poverty and improving security. Deepening democracy and achieving electoral reform are an important part of this, particularly as Nigeria looks towards presidential elections in 2011. Nigeria's economic growth and prosperity are also key, and FCO priorities include improving governance and fighting corruption, as well as supporting economic reform and investment from British businesses. We also continue to engage on counter terrorism issues, increasing Nigeria's understanding of UK foreign policy aims and objectives. As Nigeria is a major oil exporter and growing gas supplier, we continue to engage heavily on energy security issues. On migration, we enjoy a constructive relationship with Nigeria, working towards maximising the return of immigration offenders, foreign national prisoners and failed asylum seekers. We are also working on a without-consent prisoner transfer agreement.
	Regionally and internationally, Nigeria is of strategic importance, and is likely to become even more influential. Nigeria's position within the Economic Community of West African States has proved critical in recent events across the region, and we will continue to engage intensively with the Federal Government of Nigeria on regional issues. Nigeria has a key role to play in the African Union; and as of January 2010, will also be taking up a non-permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council. We are particularly supportive of Nigeria's contribution on peacekeeping across the region, including on Darfur and Liberia.

Nigeria: Politics and Government

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make representations to the government of Nigeria on the contribution of its reform programme to the stability of that country.

Chris Bryant: The UK regularly discusses the reform programme with the Government of Nigeria, including at ministerial level. We will continue to work with the Government of Nigeria on issues such as conflict in the Niger Delta, on ethnic tensions in northern Nigeria, on electoral, economic and development issues, all of which are key factors affecting the stability of the country.

North Korea: Political Prisoners

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on the number of political prisoners in North Korea used for forced labour; and if he will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: While there is no doubt that North Korea imprisons large numbers of people for their political and religious beliefs, there are no reliable figures available for the number of political prisoners in North Korea.
	Different non-governmental organisations (NGOs) produce various figures based on the observations of defectors, but these are difficult to verify, and often out of date. That is why we have consistently pressed North Korea to allow the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in North Korea access to their country. We called for this most recently at the UN Universal Periodic Review of the human rights situation in North Korea in Geneva in December 2009. At the Universal Periodic Review we also raised concerns of NGOs on the existence of political prison camps. North Korea responded by stating that no political prison camps exist.

Overseas Territories Consultative Council

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 5 January 2010,  Official Report, column 206W, on the Overseas Territories Consultative Council, when he expects to publish the final costs of the meeting held on 8 and 9 December 2009.

Chris Bryant: The final cost of the Overseas Territories Consultative Council and Forum in December 2009 was £36,460.

Russia

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he next plans to visit the Russian Federation with his German counterpart.

Chris Bryant: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State currently has no plans to visit the Russian Federation, but I am currently considering the possibility of joint meetings with the Foreign Secretary's German counterpart during a visit in February.

Uganda: Human Rights

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations his Department has made to the government of Uganda on the Anti-Homosexuality Bill before the Ugandan Parliament; and what steps his Department plans to take to help improve human rights in Uganda.

Ivan Lewis: The legislation is a private Member's Bill, which was introduced on 14 October 2009 and is currently at committee stage in Uganda's Parliament. It has not so far been adopted formally by the Ugandan government.
	We have grave concerns about the Bill, which we have made clear in representations to Ugandan Ministers including by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister to President Museveni and my noble Friend Baroness Kinnock to Foreign Minister Kutesa at the recent Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting. Our high commissioner in Kampala takes every appropriate opportunity to engage Ugandan Ministers on this issue. Sweden, which has the local EU presidency in Uganda, has led a demarche of EU member states to the Ugandan Foreign Ministry.
	Our concerns include the negative impact the Bill would have on the rights of homosexual and heterosexual Ugandans through the criminalisation of any action that could be construed as support for homosexuality, the introduction of the death penalty for some acts criminalised by the Bill, and the potential impact of the Bill on the fight against HIV/AIDS in Uganda.
	The UK is also in close touch with and is supporting Ugandan civil society organisations campaigning against the Bill.

Uganda: Politics and Government

Denis MacShane: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Ugandan Government on its proposals for legislation discriminating against gays.

Ivan Lewis: The legislation is a private Member's Bill, which was introduced on 14 October 2009 and is currently at committee stage in Uganda's Parliament. It has not so far been adopted formally by the Ugandan government.
	We have grave concerns about the Bill, which we have made clear in representations to Ugandan Ministers including by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister to President Museveni and my noble Friend Baroness Kinnock to Foreign Minister Kutesa at the recent Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting. Our high commissioner in Kampala takes every appropriate opportunity to engage Ugandan Ministers on this issue. Sweden, which has the local EU presidency in Uganda, has led a demarche of EU member states to the Ugandan Foreign Ministry.
	Our concerns include the negative impact the Bill would have on the rights of homosexual and heterosexual Ugandans through the criminalisation of any action that could be construed as support for homosexuality, the introduction of the death penalty for some acts criminalised by the Bill, and the potential impact of the Bill on the fight against HIV/AIDS in Uganda.
	The UK is also in close touch with and is supporting Ugandan civil society organisations campaigning against the Bill.

Visits Abroad

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many overseas embassies he has visited in the last 12 months.

Chris Bryant: The Cabinet Office publishes an annual list of overseas travel by Ministers costing in excess of £500. The list provides details of the date, destination and purpose of all such visits and the cost of Ministers' travel and accommodation where appropriate. Copies of the most recent list were placed in the Libraries of both Houses in July 2009. A list of overseas visits undertaken by Ministers in the period 1 April 2009 to 31 March 2010 will be published in due course. All ministerial travel is undertaken in accordance with the Ministerial Code.